^  *>  ^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


u    Hi 

^  1^  IIIIIM 


1.8 


IL25  i  1.4 


6" 


V] 


tm 


7. 


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Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  MS80 

(716)  872-4503 


T)  v-Sw        ^       A.        ^  VI 


"4  "*' 


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<^\^ 

w^^ 

^•^% 


:/i 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


^ 

* 


c 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notas/Notas  tachniquas  at  bibliographiquas 


Tha  Instituta  has  attamptad  to  obtain  tha  bast 
original  copy  availabia  for  filming.  Faaturas  of  this 
copy  which  may  ba  bibliographically  uniqua, 
which  may  altar  any  of  tha  imagas  in  tha 
raproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  changa 
tha  usual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  chackad  balow. 


D 


D 


n 


D 
D 


D 


D 


Colourad  covers/ 
Couvarture  da  coulaur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommag^a 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurte  et/ou  pellicula 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  giographiques  en  couleur 


□   Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

I      I   Colourad  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Reli6  avac  d'autras  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  Mure  serr6e  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intirieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajout6es 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  la  texta, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  Atait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t6  film^es. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppl^mantairas: 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meillour  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  ^ti  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
da  cat  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mithoda  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiqute  ci-dessous. 


□   Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

n    Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagdes 

□    Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaur^es  et/ou  pelliculdes 

0    Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  ddcolor^es,  tachetdes  ou  psqut 


D 


psqu6es 

Pages  ddtach^es 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Qualit^  in^gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  materia 
Comprend  du  materiel  suppl^mentaire 


I      I  Pages  detached/ 

r~~l  Showthrough/ 

I      I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I      I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 


I      I    Only  edition  available/ 


Seule  ddition  disponible 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc.,  ont  dt6  film^es  A  nouveau  de  fapon  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


Th 
to 


Th 
po 
of 
filr 


Or 
be 
thi 
sic 
oti 
firi 
sio 
or 


Thi 
shi 

Tir 

wh 

Ma 
difj 
ent 
be( 
rigl 
req 
me 


This  item  is  filmed  at  tha  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film6  au  taux  de  rMuction  indiqu*  ci-dessous 

10X                            14X                             18X                            22X 

26X 

30X 

v/ 

12X 

16X 

20X 

24X 

28X 

32X 

The  copy  filmed  here  hes  been  reproduced  thenks 
to  the  generosity  of: 


L'exempiaire  fiim*  fut  reprodult  grice  k  la 
gAntrositA  de: 


Harriet  Irving  Library 
University  of  New  Brunswicic 

The  images  appearing  here  are  the  bast  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  Iceeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  bacit  cover  when  appropriate.  Ail 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  ^»>  (meaning  "COi^- 
TINUEO"),  or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Harriet  Irving  Library 
University  of  New  Brunswicic 

Les  imsges  suivantes  ont  6t6  reproduites  svec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  le  condition  et 
de  la  nettet6  de  rexempiaire  film*,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrst  de 
filmage. 

Les  exempleires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimte  sent  film^s  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  sutres  exempleires 
originaux  sont  fiimis  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminent  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboies  suivants  apparaftra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — »>  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  Y  signifie  "FIN". 


IVIaps.  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  §tre 
filmte  d  des  tsux  de  reduction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  ciichd,  ii  est  film6  d  partir 
de  i'angle  sup6rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  &  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n^cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m^thode. 


1  2  3 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

MEMOIR 


OF  THE 


HON.    WILLIAM     STURGIS. 


I'KKl'AKKD  AGKKEAIU.Y   TO  A  JJESOLUTION 


OK    THE 


MASSACHUSETTS    HISTORICAL    SOCIETY. 


By  CHARLES    G.   LORING. 


BOSTON: 

PRESS    OF    JOHN    WILSON    AND    SON. 

1864. 


MEMOIR. 


The  formation  of  character  being  the  chief  purpose  of 
human  life,  considered  in  reference  alike  to  this  world  and  to 
the  world  of  which  this  is  the  threshold,  the  death  of  any 
member  of  our  community,  who  has  exhibited  a  character  of 
commanding-influence,  or  of  peculiar  strength  or  beauty,  natu- 
rally excites  the  desire  to  learn  by  what  means  the  end  of 
living  was  thus  far  accomplished. 

Nor  is  the  inquiry  of  less  usefulness  than  interest.  Recur- 
rence to  the  road  which  has  led  to  moral  or  intellectual  pre- 
eminence or  to  conspicuous  achievement  is  needed,  not  only 
to  indicate  the  means  for  attaining  to  the  noblest  object  of 
human  effort,  but  to  correct  an  often  erroneous  estimate 
of  circumstances,  generally  accounted  advantages,  which, 
however,  are  not  infrequently  hinderances  to  the  best  pro- 
gress in  life ;  and  to  better  understand  others,  which  we  are 
pi'one  to  regard  as  hardships  or  privations,  but  which  are,  in 
reality,  needful  helps  in  scaling  the  heights  of  a  worthy 
ambition.  And  especially  is  such  recurrence  to  early  influ- 
ences important  in  a  community  like  that  in  which  our  lot 
is  cast,  where  the  casual  relations  of  birth  have  no  power 
to  raise  the  possessor  to  any  permanent  or  widely  extended 
usefulness  or  power,  independently  of  his  individual  worth, 
whatever  may  have  been  his  lineage  or  fancied  advantages 
of  inherited  position.  ^- 

1 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STUROIS. 


It  is  an  instructive  fact,  that  the  men,  who  ot  late  years 
have  been  chiefly  distinguished  among  us  for  elevation  of 
character  in  public  and  private  life,  —  who  acquired  the  largest 
fortunes  for  themselves,  and  assisted  others  in  acquiring 
them,  —  and  who  exerted  the  greatest  influence  upon  the  com- 
mercial and  manufacturing  interests  of  this  portion  of  our 
country,  —  were  men  of  no  early  advantages,  excepting  the 
absence  of  the  circumstances  usually  accounted  as  such ; 
with  no  means  of  providing  their  daily  bread  but  their 
own  industry;  no  better  education  than  our  public  schools 
afforded ;  and  no  patrons  but  such  as  faithful  service  in  hum- 
ble stations  had  acquired  for  them.  Samuel  Appleton,  Nathan 
Appleton,  Amos  Lawrence,  Abbott  Lawrence,  William  Apple - 
ton,  and  William  Sturgis,  are  names  familiar  among  us  as 
household  words,  in  their  suggestion  of  ability,  wealth,  in- 
fluence, and  intellectual  and  moral  pre-eminence..  And  to  the 
same  list  may  be  added  the  names  of  Francis  C.  Lowell  and 
Patrick  T.  Jackson,  who,  under  some  few  circumstances 
usually  esteemed  more  advantageous,  rose,  independently  of 
them,  to  be  the  architects  of  their  own  fortunes,  and  -the 
founders  of  the  vast  manufacturing  interests  of  the  Eastern 
States. 

The  memoirs  of  such  men  are  also  interesting  and  useful, 
as  exhibiting  representative  types  of  the  fruit  of  New- 
England  descent  and  training.  The  energy,  self-devotion, 
personal  independence,  moral  purity,  and  earnestness  of  the 
Pilgrim  Fathers  have  come  down  in  undiminished  force, 
though  in  modified  forms,  to  their  descendants.  Their  in- 
tensity of  character  and  of  purpose  has  been  as  visible  in  the 
peaceful  enterprises  of  commerce  and  manufactures,  which 
have  made  the  United  States  the  second  commercial  nation 
in  the  world,  as  it  was  when  manifested  of  old  in  clearing  the 
forest,  subduing  the  savage,  and  establishing  the  foundations 
of  republican  government  in  the  wilderness.  Nor  has  it  been 
less  conspicnona  in  the  generous  use  made  of  the  fruits  of 


MEMOIR  OP   WILLIAM  8TURGIS. 


toil,  as  the  liberal  foundations  of  unprecedentedly  numerous 
and  wise  institutions  for  promoting  religious,  moral,  and 
intellectual  culture,  and  for  the  relief  of  human  suffering, 
abundantly  testify.  And  now,  in  this  dark  hour  of  our 
country's  agony,  the  same  intensity  of  character  has  burst 
forth  with  yet  increasing  lustre  in  the  voluntary  sacrifices 
of  life  and  property,  so  generally  and  nobly  made  for  the 
suppression  of  treason,  the  maintenance  of  the  nation's  life, 
and  the  glory  of  its  flag.  When  the  history  of  the  present 
Rebellion  shall  be  written,  the  voluntary  contributions  of 
blood  and  treasure  everywhere  laid  by  the  people  of  the  Free 
States  upon  the  altar  of  their  country,  in  a  resolute  defence 
of  the  great  principles  of  freedom  and  of  law,  and  in  a  self- 
relying  determination  to  sustain  the  Government  and  the 
honor  of  the  national  standard  at  all  hazards  and  at  any  price, 
will  constitute  an  era  in  the  annals  of  patriotism  more  glori- 
ous to  the  United  States,  and  of  better  augury  for  their  future 
safety  and  power,  than  any  warlike  achievements,  however 
illustrious. 

Perhaps  no  one,  known  by  the  present  generation,  has 
presented  a  more  striking  example  of  the  peculiar  traits 
of  character  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  as  modified  by  the 
advanced  civilization  of  the  age,  than  the  subject  of  this 
Memoir ;  who,  entering  life  upon  a  little  farm  on  the  sands  of 
Cape  Cod,  began  his  career  of  self-reliance  when  sixteen 
years  old,  as  a  sailor-boy  before  the  mast,  on  wages  of  ccven 
dollars  a  month,  and  has  recently  closed  his  days  on  earth  at 
the  ripe  age  of  eighty-one  years,  —  possessed  of  a  most 
ample  estate,  standing  with  his  family  in  the  foremost  rank  of 
American  society,  and  distinguished  for  a  highly  cultivated  in- 
tellect, and  for  remarkably  extensive  knowledge,  that  embraced 
not  only  the  commerce  of  the  globe,  but  a  wide  field  of  his- 
torical and  literary  information.  Nor  was  he  less  conspicuous 
for  firm  and  liberal  principles,  for  a  clear  perception  of  jus- 
tice, for  a   high   sense  of  honor,  for  generous   sentiments 


MEMOIR  OP  WILLIAM   8TUROI8. 


and  tender  affections ;  and  he  died  Burrounded  by  numerous 
and  ardent  friends  of  all  ages,  —  from  gray-haired  contempo- 
raries, to  the  charmed  boy  with  whom  he  conversed  as  a  com- 
panion upon  the  philosophy  of  life  or  the  events  of  the  times, 
and  the  little  children  who  loved  to  gather  around  him  to 
listen  to  his  tale  of  marvels  and  adventures  among  the  Indians 
of  the  North-west  Coast. 

William  Sturgis  was  born  on  the  twenty-fifth  day  of 
February,  1782,  in  the  town  of  Barnstable,  on  Cape  Cod,  in 
Massachusetts,  near  to  Plymouth,  the  landing-place  of  the  Pil- 
grims of  the  "  Mayflower."  His  father,  of  the  same  name, 
was  a  highly  respectable  shipmaster  of  Barnstable,  who  for 
many  years  sailed  in  command  of  various  vessels  from  Boston. 
He  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  Edward  Sturgis,  the  first  of 
the  name  in  this  country,  who  came  over  from  England  in 
1630,  and,  having  first  settled  at  Charlestown,  afterwards 
removed  to  Yarmouth,  where,  in  1638,  he  is  recorded  as  one 
of  the  "  first  planters  "  of  that  town. 

His  mother  was  Hannah  Mills,  the  youngest  daughter  of 
the  Rev.  Jonathan  Mills,  a  graduate  of  Harvard  University, 
who  was  settled  in  the  ministry  at  Harwich,  where  he  died. 

His  earliest  introduction  into  life  was  to  a  sphere  of  useful- 
ness and  responsibility.  His  father's  nautical  pursuits  kept 
him  from  home  for  the  greater  portion  of  his  time,  leaving 
to  his  wife  the  care  of  the  young  family  (in  which  William 
was  the  eldest  child  and  the  only  son),  and  of  the  few  acres  of 
land  that  constituted  what  was  then  called  a  Cape-Cod  farm. 
She  was  a  capable  and  energetic  woman,  with  a  large  share 
of  sound  common  sense;  but  she  found  it  indispensable  to  avail 
herself  of  the  aid  of  her  son,  as  soon  as  he  was  old  enough 
to  afford  any,  in  the  management  of  their  domestic  affairs. 
She  was,  however,  too  judicious  to  suffer  her  requirements  to 
interfere  with  his  regular  attendance  at  school,  whenever  one, 
public  or  private,  was  within  reach.  The  schools  of  that  day 
were  none  of  them  of  a  high  order,  compared  with  those  of  the 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


present  time;  but  such  as  he  attended  were  probably  as  good 
as  the  average  then  to  be  found  in  country  towns  at  a  dis- 
tance from  the  metropolis.  At  the  age  of  thirteen,  his  mother, 
being  solicitous  to  procure  for  him  the  best  education  her 
means  would  afford,  sent  him  to  a  private  school  in  Hingham, 
kept  by  Mr.  James  Warren,  son  of  General  Warren  of  Ply- 
mouth, a  prominent  patriot  of  Revolutionary  times.  Here  ho 
passed  a  year ;  and  in  a  memorandum  made  by  him,  from 
which  this  brief  account  of  his  life  is  chiefly  taken,  he  bears 
grateful  testimony  to  his  teacher's  fidelity,  by  saying,  "  If  I 
did  not  make  sufficient  progress,  it  was  not  the  fault  of  the 
instructor,  who  was  attentive  and  efficient."  His  subsequent 
love  of  learning,  and  the  ability  in  composition  to  which  he 
atta'ned  amidst  occupations  generally  regarded  as  unfavorable 
to  the  cultivation  of  letters,  bear  equally  satisfactory  testimony 
to  the  fidelity  with  which  the  pupil  improved  his  brief  oppor- 
tunity for  gaining  the  rudiments  of  an  education.  In  the  year 
1796  he  came  to  Boston,  and  entered  the  counting-house  of 
his  kinsman,  the  late  Mr.  Russell  Sturgis,  at  that  time  largely 
engaged  in  the  purchase  and  exportation  of  what  were  de- 
nominated "  shipping  furs." 

And  here,  too,  his  aptitude,  and  his  faithful  improvement 
of  his  time  and  of  the  means  of  acquiring  knowledge  in  the 
service  of  his  employer,  prepared  him  in  a  peculiar  manner 
for  taking  advantage  of  the  seemingly  marvellous  contingen- 
cies, so  soon  unexpectedly  to  present  themselves,  and  to 
be  made  the  stepping-stones  of  his  rapid  career  to  the  ulti- 
mate objects  of  his  ambition.  After  remaining  in  this  service 
about  eighteen  months,  he  entered  the  counting-room  of 
Messrs.  James  and  Thomas  H.  Perkins,  merchants  of  great 
eminence  and  extensive  commercial  relations,  and  at  that 
time  much  engaged  in  trade  with  the  North-west  Coast  and 
China.  He  remained  there  until  the  death  of  his  father, 
which  took  place  abroad  in  the  year  1797,  after  his  vessel 
had  been  captured  and  plundered  by  piratical  privateers  in 


0 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   8TUROI8. 


the  West  Indies.  His  family  were  left  in  straitened  circum- 
stances ;  and  William,  being  now  thrown  wholly  upon  his  own 
resources,  and  compelled  to  adopt  some  occupation  that  might 
not  only  secure  his  present  support,  but  give  promise  of 
future  success  in  life,  did  that  "  which  was  most  natural  for 
a  young  Cape-Cod  boy  to  do  "  under  such  circumstances,  — 
he  decided  "to  follow  the  sea." 

Having  been  taught  the  rudiments  of  navigation  at  school, 
he  set  earnestly  to  work,  devoting  all  the  time  that  could  be 
spared  from  his  duties  in  the  counting-room  to  the  acqui- 
sition of  such  fufther  knowledge  of  the  theory  and  practice 
of  the  art  as  would  qualify  him  for  office  on  board  of  a  ship, 
and  thus  prepare  the  way  for  early  promotion  to  the  com- 
mand  of  one. 

After  a  few  months  of  diligent  study  under  the  instruction 
of  Mr.  Osgood  Carlton,  a  well-known  and  highly  respected 
teacher  of  mathematics  and  navigation  in  those  days,  he  was 
pronounced  competent  to  navigate  a  ship  to  any  part  of  the 
world.  And  events  most  unlooked  for  speedily  followed, 
that  manifested  the  fidelity  with  which  he  had  studied,  and 
the  justice  of  the  eulogium  of  his  instructor. 

In  the  summer  of  the  year  1798,  his  employers,  the  Messrs. 
Perkins,  were  fitting  out  a  small  vessel,  the  "  EJiza,"  of  one 
hundred  and  thirty -six  tons  (below  the  average  in  size  of 
those  now  employed  in  the  coasting  trade),  for  a  voyage  to 
the  North-\vest  Coast,  San  Bias  on  the  western  coast  of  Mex- 
ico, and  China,  under  the  command  of  Captain  James  Rowan. 
This  officer  was  a  good  practical  seaman,  without  education 
or  much  theoretical  knowledge  of  navigation;  but,  having 
been  several  times  on  the  North-west  Coast,  he  was  well  qual- 
ified to  carry  on  a  trade  with  the  Indians,  which  was  con- 
ducted wholly  by  barter.  The  large  number  of  the  crew  for 
a  vessel  so  small,  amounting  to  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  men, 
but  necessary  for  defence  against  the  Indians,  rendered  the 
passage  one  of  great  discomfort  to  those  before  the  mast,  and  ex- 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   8TUR0I8.  7 

posed  the  "  green  liand  "  to  a  somewlmt  severe  experience  of 
the  hardships  of  a  sailor's  life.  Thoy  sailed  from  Boston  early 
in  August;  and,  after  touching  at  the  Falkland  and  the  Sand- 
wich Islands,  thoy  reached  the  North-west  Coast  in  the  latter 
p?lrt  of  the  month  of  Docemher.  Captain  Rowan  soon  perceived 
the  peculiar  qualillcations  and  efficiency  of  young  Sturgis, 
and  selected  him  as  his  assistant  in  the  management  of  the 
trade.  This  was  an  opportunity  which  the  youthful  aspirant 
well  knew  how  to  appreciate  and  improve.  Ho  not  only  de- 
voted himself  assiduously  to  the  mastery  of  the  business  in 
all  its  details,  but  also  to  a  laborious  study  of  the  Indian 
languages,  and  to  the  cultivation  of  friendly  relations  with 
the  natives  by  kind  words  and  courteous  manners,  as  well  as 
by  the  most  scrupulous  truthfulness  and  honor  in  his  deal- 
ings with  them.  By  such  means  he  soon  succeeded  in 
securing  a  degree  of  affection,  respect,  and  influence  among 
them,  to  which  no  other  white  man  bad  ever  attained,  and 
of  nobler  worth  than  even  the  kindred  elevation  which  he 
afterwards  enjoyed  in  the  best  informed  and  most  polished 
society  of  his  native  State.  Indeed,  his  name  has  ever 
since  been  cherished  by  these  untutored  savages  with  sin- 
gular affection  and  reverence,  in  bright  contrast  with  their 
recollections  of  the  vices  and  barbarities  of  others,  whose 
superiority  in  civilization,  if  such  it  can  be  called,  served 
only  as  the  means  of  brutal  excesses,  frauds,  and  cruelties,  of 
which  the  former  experience  of  the  poor  Indian  afforded 
no  parallel.  Among  the  latest  tidings  from  that  decaying 
race  came  affectionate  inquiries  from  an  aged  chief  concerning 
his  old  friend,  "  the  good  Mr.  Sturgis,"  —  the  dying  echo  of 
the  influences  of  a  noble  character  upon  the  children  of  the 
forest,  still  reverberating,  after  more  than  sixty  years,  from 
the  shore  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  to  his  grave  on  the  shore  of 
the  Atlantic. 

After  visiting  numerous  tribes,  and  disposing  of  the  portion 
of  the  cargo  destined  for  that  coast  in  exchange  for  sea-otter 


1 1  ->-'^ 


8 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


skins  and  other  furs,  they  anchored  in  the  port  of  Caiganee, 
in  latitude  55°  north,  much  frequented  by  trading  vessels. 
Here  they  found  two  Boston  ships,  —  the  "Despatch,"  com- 
manded by  Captain  Breck ;  and  the  "  Ulysses,"  by  Captain 
L:*mb.  The  crew  of  the  latter  ship  were  in  a  state  of  mutiny. 
They  and  the  officers,  having  revolted  a  few  days  before,  had 
seized  the  captain,  put  him  in  irons,  and  confined  him  to  a 
state-room,  with  an  armed  sentry  at  the  door.  This  was  alleged 
to  have  been  done  in  consequence  of  the  cruel  treatment  by 
Lamb  of  those  under  his  command.  Captains  Rowan  and 
Breck  interfered,  obtained  his  release,  and  took  him  on 
board  of  the  "  Eliza."  After  negotiations  with  the  mutineers, 
occupying  several  days,,  and  a  promise  by  Lamb  to  pardon  all 
that  had  been  done,  and  to  treat  them  better  in  future,  the 
crew,  with  the  exception  of  the  officers  and  two  seamen, 
consented  that  he  should  resume  the  command  of  his  ship. 
This  was  done ;  the  second  and  third  mates,  with  the  two  un- 
willing seamen,  being  taken  on  board  the  other  vessels,  and 
the  chief  mate  being  confined  in  irons  on  board  of  the  "  Ulys- 
ses." This  arrangement  left  that  ship  with  no  officer  except- 
ing the  boatswain,  v/ho  was  illiterate,  and  without  a  knowl- 
edge of  navigation.  Captain  Lamb  made  very  liberal  proposals 
to  induce  some  officer  from  the  "Eliza"  or  the  "Despatch" 
to  take  the  situation  of  chief  mate  on  board  of  his  ship,  but 
unsuccessfully ;  for,  so  bad  was  his  reputation  for  ill  treating 
his  officers  as  well  as  his  men,  that  no  one  was  willing  to  go 
with  him.  It  was  indispensable,  however,  that  there  should 
be  some  officer  on  board  capable  of  navigating  the  ship,  and 
of  managiug  the  trade  with  the  Indians,  to  take  the  place  of 
Captain  Lamb,  in  the  event  of  hi  -  death,  or  of  his  inability 
to  continue  in  command. 

Young  Sturgli  being  competent  for  both  of  those  duties, 
although  deficient  in  practical  seamanship.  Captain  Lam'u 
proposed,  that  he  should  take  the  place  of  chief  mate  of  the 
"  Ulysses,"  with  liberal  wages ;   and  should  also  act  as  his 


MEMOIR   OP  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


9 


laiganee, 
vessels. 
!h,"  com- 
Captain 
■  mutiny, 
lore,  had 
lim  to  a 
,8  alleged 
tment  by- 
wan  and 
him   on 
utineers, 
ardon  all 
ture,  the 
seamen, 
his  ship. 
Q  two  un- 
sels,  and 
e  "  Ulys- 
r  except- 
a  knowl- 
proposals 
es  patch" 
ship,  but 
I  treating 
ing  to  go 
re  should 
ship,  and 
place  of 
inability 

ie  duties, 
in  Laiuu 
,te  of  the 
ct  as  his 


assistant  in  trading  with  the  Indians,  and  for  his  services 
should  receive  a  small  commission  upon  all  furs  collected  on 
the  Coast.  Such  an  offer  to  a  lad  of  seventeen,  then  a  boy  in 
the  forecastle,  doing  duty  as  a  common  sailor,  but  eager  for 
advancement  in  the  profession  he  had  chosen,  was  too  tempt- 
ing, in  regard  both  to  station  and  emolument,  to  be  rejected ; 
and,  on  the  thirteenth  day  of  May,  he  left  the  "  Eliza,"  and 
joined  the  "  Ulysses,"  though  not  without  serious  misgivings. 
They  remained  on  the  Coast,  collecting  furs,  until  November ; 
when  they  sailed  for  China,  and  arrived  at  Canton  near  the 
close  of  the  year.  There  they  found  the  "Eliza,"  which,  after 
visiting  several  ports  on  the  western  coast  of  Mexico,  reached 
Canton  in  October,  and  was  then  nearly  ready  to  sail  for 
home.  Young  Sturgis  had  found  his  situation  on  board  of 
the  "  Ulysses  "  less  uncomfortable  than  he  had  apprehended, 
but  nevertheless  far  from  being  a  pleasant  one ;  and  he  eagerly 
accepted  a  proposal  from  Captain  Rowan  to  rejoin  the  "Eliza," 
and  take  the  position  of  third  mate  on  her  homeward  passage. 
As  Captain  Lamb  could  easily  procure  experienced  officers  at 
Canton,  he  consented  to  this  arrangement;  and,  professing 
entire  satisfaction  with  the  manner  in  which  Mr.  Sturgis  had 
performed  his  duties,  promptly  paid  him  his  wages  and  com- 
missions. The  "Eliza"  soon  afterwards  sailed,  and  arrived 
in  Boston  in  the  spring  of  the  year  1800. 

The  reputation  of  Mr.  Sturgis  Avas  now  so  far  established, 
that  he  was  immediately  engaged  to  serve  as  first  mate  and 
assistant-trader  on  board  of  the  ship  "  Caroline,"  owned  by 
Messrs.  James  and  Thomas  Lamb  and  others,  and  then  fitting 
out  for  a  three-years'  voyage  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  and  China, 
under  the  command  of  Captain  Charles  Derby  of  Salem,  —  a 
worthy  man,  but  not  particularly  qualified  for  the  enterprise, 
as  he  was  in  feeble  health,  had  not  before  visited  the  Coast, 
and  knew  nothing  of  the  Lidian  trade.  He  appeared  to  be 
in  a  consumption  when  they  sailed;  and  his  health  failed  so 
rapidly,  that,  before  the  end  of  the  first  year,  ho  virtually 

2 


10 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM  STURGIS. 


gave  up  the  command  to  Mr.  Sturgis ;  and,  in  the  course  of 
the  second  year,  he  formally  resigned  it  to  him,  went  on 
shore  at  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  there  died  shortly 
afterwards. 

Thus  this  young  man,  at  the  early  age  of  nineteen,  and 
with  less  than  four  years'  experience  at  sea,  became  master 
of  a  large  ship  in  a  far  distant  country  j  the  sole  conductor  of 
an  enterprise  requiring  the  hif^hest  qualifications  of  seaman- 
ship, together  with  the  greatest  energy  and  discretion  in  the 
management  of  a  large  crow,  employed  in  peculiar  and 
miscellaneous  services  on  shore  as  well  as  on  board;  and 
requiring  also  unceasing  vigilance  and  courage  to  prevent 
surprises  and  attacks  by  the  savage  inhabitants,  and  great 
judgment  and  skill  in  conducting  a  barter  trade,  now  com- 
mitted wholly  to  his  cara  and  responsibility.  He  proved 
himself  worthy  of  the  trust.  He  completed  the  voyage  with 
entire  success.  He  had  obtained  a  valuable  collection  of  furs 
on  the  Coast,  which  he  exchanged  at  Canton  for  an  assorted 
China  cargo,  and  with  this  returned  to  Boston  in  the  spring  of 
the  year  1803,  to  the  great  satisfaction  and  profit  of  his  em- 
ployers ;  and  thus  entitled  himself  to  stand  in  the  foremost 
rank  in  the  most  difficult  and  responsible  department  of  his 
chosen  profession. 

It  is  difficult  to  imagine  a  state  of  more  intense  satisfac- 
tion and  of  more  laudable  pride,  than  that  with  which  this 
youth,  just  entering  upon  manhood,  and  not  yet  invested  with 
its  legal  responsibilities,  must  have  greeted  the  shores  of  his 
native  State.  Only  five  years  before,  he  had  left  it  as  a 
stripling  before  the  mast,  and  he  was  now  returning  to  it  as 
the  master  of  a  noble  ship,  with  a  valuable  cargo  on  board, 
the  fruit  in  great  measure  of  his  own  skill  and  exertions,  and 
with  the  consciousness  of  an  established  reputation  that  would 
thereafter  enable  him  to  command  opportunities  in  the  road 
to  rank  and  fortune. 

The  combination  of  circumstan"ccs  which  thus  led  liim  at  this 


i 


'4 
1 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


11 


le  master 
ductor  of 
F  seaman- 
ion  in  the 
iliar    and 
aid;   and 
3  prevent 
and  great 
now  com- 
e  proved 
yage  with 
ion  of  furs 
n  assorted 
5  spring  of 
of  his  em- 
e  foremost 
ent  of  his 

le  satisfac- 
(vhich  this 
ested  with 
ores  of  his 
3ft  it  as  a 
ing  to  it  as 
on  board, 
irtions,  and 
that  would 
n  the  road 

him  ill  this 


early  age  so  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  to  the  pinnacle  of  his 
ariJbition,  and  a  position  of  such  grave  and  honorable  respon- 
sibility, cannot  but  arrest  the  attention  c:'  the  most  thought- 
less reader.  To  such  as  may  be  disposed  to  account  it 
fortuitous  it  certainly  presents  a  remarkable  probleln  in  the 
calculation  of  chances.  But  to  those  who  believe,  that  there 
is  "  a  Divinity  that  shapes  our  ends,  rough-hew  them  how  we 
will,"  this  wonderful  adaptation  of  the  means  to  the  end, 
and  these  events,  seemingly  so  accidental  and  disconnected, 
working  harmoniously  to  show  how  capacity  and  success 
may  be  the  reward  of  energy  and  faithfulness  in  the  spring- 
time of  life,  will  suggest  a  more  inspiring  solution,  in 
the  lesson  of  instruction  and  encouragement  which  it  was 
intended  to  convey.  There  is  not  the  slightest  reason  for 
believing  that  young  Sturgis  entered  the  counting-room  of 
his  kinsman  with  any  especial  purpoce  in  reference  to  his 
subsequent  career,  the  only  apparent  cause  being  the  willing- 
ness of  a  relative  to  lend  to  hirii  a  helping  hand  in  preparing 
him  for  mercantile  life;  but  the  knowledge  which  he  thus 
acquired  of  the  qualities  and  relative  natures  of  furs  was 
doubtless  the  chief  external  cause  of  his  early  and  surpris- 
ing success.  It  induced  his  first  commander  to  select  him 
as  his  assistant  in  trading  with  the  natives.  This  opened 
wide  to  him  the  door  for  the  learning  of  their  languages, 
the  cultivation  of  their  confidence  and  friendship,  and  the 
acquisition  of  tact  and  skill  in  dealing  with  them ;  and  these 
attainments,  already  great,  were  doubtless  of  most  important 
influence  in  causing  hi  appointment  as  chief  mate  of  the 
"  Ulysses,"  which,  again,  was  the  introduction  to  his  subse- 
quent precocious  and  successful  career. 

As  his  early  qualification  had,  while  he  was  gaining  it,  no 
direct  reference  to  the  great  results  to  which  it  led,  so  the 
opportunities  for  its  almost  immediate  and  successful  appli- 
cation had  no  probable  connection  with  any  such  use  of  it  in 
the  ordinary  course  of  events.    The  most  extravagant  fancy 


m 


! 


12 


MEMOIR  OP   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


could  not  have  pictured  a  more  improbable  thing  than  the 
sudden  elevation  to  which  a  mutiny  on  board  of  another 
ship,  upon  a  far-distant  and  wild  coast,  was  so  soon  to  raise 
him ;  or  the  further  advancement  which  was  to  follow  so 
iramedifttely,  in  his  next  voyage,  from  the  resignation  of  the 
master,  vesting  in  him  the  command  of  the  ship,  and  consti- 
tuting him  the  sole  conductor  of  one  of  the  most  arduous  and 
responsible  enterprises  of  the  naval  profession. 

Of  course  the  owners  of  the  vessel  were  solicitous  for  the 
continuance  of  such  an  agent  in  their  service.  She  was 
accordingly  at  once  fitted  out,  and  sailed  under  his  command 
on  another  similar  voyage,  which  also  proved  eminently  suc- 
cessful, terminating  in  June  in  the  year  1806. 

Mr.  Sturgis,  or,  as  he  was  then  uniformly  styled,  Captain 
Sturgis,  was  now  first  in  the  foremost  rank  of  all  engaged  in 
this  department  of  commercial  enterprise ;  and  his  services 
were  of  course  eagerly  sought  for.  Mr.  Theodore  Lyman,  a 
merchant  of  Boston,  had  become  largely  interested  in  the 
North-west  trade.  He  had,  at  this  time,  two  ships  on  the 
Coast ;  and  was  fitting  out  another  for  the  same  destination, 
named  the  "  Atahualpa."  He  offered  Captain  Sturgis  very 
liberal  terms  to  take  command  of  this  ship  and  proceed  to  the 
Coast  for  one  season,  and  assume  the  charge  and  direction  of 
all  his  business  there ;  and  thence  to  go  on  to  Canton,  taking 
with  him  one  of  the  two  other  vessels,  and  the  furs  collected 
by  all  of  them,  to  be  exchanged  for  homeward  cargoes.  This 
offer  was  accepted ;  and,  in  October,  he  sailed  on  his  fourth 
voyage  round  the  world.  Thus  the  sailor-boy  of  1798  had 
become  in  1806,  as  it  were,  an  admiral,  in  command  of  a 
fleet  upon  the  Coast,  where,  eight  years  before,  he  had 
arrived  in  the  humblest  station.  This  expedition  also  proved 
very  profitable  both  to  Mr.  Lyman  and  to  himself,  and  termi- 
nated on  his  arrival  in  Boston  in  June,  1808. 

The  threatening  aspect  of  the  foreign  relations  of  the 
United  States,  and  the  embargo  which  then  paralyzed  com- 


MEMOm  OF   WILLIAM   STUUGIS. 


13 


than  the 
[  another 
n  to  raise 
follow  80 
on  of  the 
id  consti- 
luous  and 

ua  for  the 
She  was 
command 

lently  suc- 

i,  Captain 
mgaged  in 
s  services 
I  Lyman,  a 
•,ed  in  the 
ps  on  the 
estination, 
irgis  very 
eed  to  the 
irection  of 
;on,  taking 
9  collected 
oes.    This 
lis  fourth 
1798  had 
nand  of  a 
3,  he   had 
so  proved 
and  termi- 

ins  of  the 
lyzed  com- 


mercial enterprise,  detained  Mr.  Sturgis  at  home  until  April 
in  the  year  1809 ;  when  he  again  sailea  in  command  of  the 
"  Atahualpa,"  for  Mr.  Lyman,  upon  a  direct  voyage  to  Canton, 
with  an  outfit  exceeding  three  hundred  thousand  Spanish 
milled  dollars,  to  be  invested  there  in  a  return  cargo.  In  this 
adventure  the  late  Mr.  John  Bromfield  Avas  associated  with 
him,  —  a  gentleman  of  great  intelligence  and  elevated  charac- 
ter. A  warm  friendship  immediately  grew  up  between  them, 
which  constituted  much  of  the  happiness  of  their  lives,  until 
the  lamented  death  of  Mr.  Bromfield  in  the  year  1849. 

The  vessel,  lightly  armed  with  a  few  small  cannon,  came  to 
anchor  in  Macao  Roads  (about  seventy  miles  from  Canton) 
on  the  night  of  the  21st  of  August;  and,  early  the  next 
morning,  was  attacked  by  a  fleet  of  sixteen  Ladrone  or  pirati- 
cal vessels,  some  of  them  heavily  armed,  under  command  of 
Appotesi,  a  noted  rebel-chief.  The  fight  was  a  very  desperate 
one  oil  the  part  of  the  comparatively  small  crew  of  the  "  Ata- 
hualpa," and  continued  for  more  than  an  hour ;  some  of  the 
pirates  being  so  near  as  to  succeed  in  throwing  combustibles 
on  board,  which  set  the  vessel  on  fire  in  many  places.  But 
the  coolness  and  intrepidity  of  her  commander,  aided  by  the 
presence  and  assistance  of  Mr.  Bromfield,  inspired  her  gal- 
lant crew  with  invincible  courage.  The  pirates  were  repulsed 
with  great  slaughter,  and  the  ship  was  enabled  to  escape,  and 
find  protection  under  the  guns  of  the  Portuguese  fort.  She  was 
again  attacked  by  them  on  lier  passage  up,  in  company  with 
four  other  American  ships,  but  finally  reached  Canton  in  safety. 
This  voyage,  like  all  the  rest  in  which  he  had  been  engaged, 
terminated  very  successfully,  and  he  arrived  at  Boston  in 
April,  1810. 

By  twelve  years  of  arduous  effort  and  unremitted  toil  in 
the  service  of  others,  at  sea  and  in  foreign  lands,  and  by  pru- 
dent economy,  Mr.  Sturgis  had  at  last  acquired  suflicient  means 
for  establishing  himself  in  business  on  his  own  account.  He 
concluded,  therefore,  to  abandon  the  sea;  and  now  entered  into 


14 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


copartnership  with  Mr.  John  Bryant,  under  the  name  and  firm 
of  "  Bryant  and  Sturgis,"  as  merchant?  resident  in  Boston  for 
the  prosecution  of  foreign  trade.  Th'.d  copartnership  continued 
for  more  than  half  a  century,  being  for  many  years  the  oldest 
in  the  city  of  Boston,  and  was  indeed  terminated  only  by  the 
death  of  Mr.  Sturgis.  Although  these  gentlemen  were  unlike 
in  many  respects,  and  entertained  different  views  on  many 
subjects,  their  connection  was  entirely  harmonious ;  and  the 
writer  of  this  Memoir  heard  Mr.  Sturgis,  not  long  before  his 
decease,  remark  that  no  unpleasant  word  had  ever  passed 
between  them.  Their  business  was  principally  with  places 
upon  the  Coast  of  the  Pacific  and  with  China;  and,  from  the 
year  1810  to  1840,  more  than  half  of  the  trade  carried  on 
with  those  countries  from  the  United  States  was  under  their 
direction.  They  occasionally,  however,  had  commercial  inter- 
course with  nearly  every  quarter  of  the  world. 

In  the  year  1810,  Mr.  Sturgis  was  united  in  marriage 
to  Elizabeth  M.,  daughter  of  John  Davis,  Judge  of  the  Dis- 
trict Court  of  the  United  States  for  the  District  of  Massa- 
chusetts :  clarum  et  venerabile  nomen,  which,  to  those  who 
knew  him,  recalls  the  image  of  one  of  the  most  scholarly, 
benignant,  and  venerable  gentlemen,  and  one  of  the  purest, 
most  enlightened,  and  humane  judges,  that  ever  blessed  so- 
ciety, or  ever  adorned  the  bench.  His  presence  was  felt  as  a 
benediction  no  less  in  court  than  everywhere  else.  It  was  he, 
who,  not  long  before  his  death,  while  sitting,  in  an  autumn 
twilight,  at  his  window  in  the  country,  conversing  with  a 
friend  upon  old  age,  and  the  falling  leaves  as  illustrative  of 
the  decay  of  life,  replied,  "  Yes ;  but  th  ^n  we  see  the  stars 
more  plainly." 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sturgis  had  six  children:  one  son,  who  died 
at  an  early  age ;  and  five  daughters,  all  of  whom  were  mar- 
ried, and  three  of  whom,  with  their  mother,  survive  him. 

It  could  not  be  otherwise  than  that  a  person  of  the  mental 
strength  and   activity  of  Mr.  Sturgis  should  soon  become 


MEMOIR  OP  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


15 


and  firm 
(ston  for 
ontinued 
le  oldest 
y  by  the 
:e  unlike 
on  many 
and  the 
efore  his 
r   passed 
h  places 
from  the 
arried  on 
ider  their 
jial  inter- 
marriage 
•  the  Dis- 
of  Massa- 
liose  who 
scholarly, 
le  purest, 
essed  so- 
s  felt  as  a 

t  was  ho, 
n  autumn 
ig  with  a 
trative  of 

the  stars 

who  died 
were  mar- 

him. 

he  mental 
in  become 


m 


generally  known  and  appreciated,  and  that  any  political 
party  should  desire  to  increase  its  power  and  influence  by 
sending  him  as  its  representative  in  the  public  councils. 
Nor  was  it  less  natural,  that  one  whom  rapid  and  unexampled 
success  must  have  inspired  with  confidence  should  be  willing 
to  widen  the  sphere  of  his  reputation  and  influence.  We 
find  accordingly,  that,  in  the  year  1814,  he  was  elected  a 
representative  of  the  town  of  Boston  in  the  Legislature  of 
Massachusetts ;  and  such  was  his  capacity  and  fidelity,  that, 
from  that  period  until  1845,  he  was  for  the  greater  portion 
of  the  time  a  member  of  the  House  or  of  the  Senate.  He  was 
not,  however,  and  from  his  nature  could  not  be,  popular  in 
political  life,  nor  fitted  to  succeed  as  an  aspirant  for  political 
preferment,  even  if  his  taste  or  inclination  had  pointed  in  that 
direction.  He  was  altogether  too  independent  and  self-relying, 
and  too  single-minded  in  his  conceptions  of  duty,  to  enter  into 
the  compromises  required  of  the  leaders  of  a  political  party, 
however  necessary  such  compromises  may  be  considered,  and 
however  justifiable  in  persons  of  different  temperament,  or  of 
what  perhaps  may  be  accounted  broader  views  of  policy. 
No  party  could  rely  upon  his  support  of  measures,  or  his 
acquiescence  in  them,  for  its  own  sake,  when,  in  his  private 
judgment,  they  conflicted  with  the  general  welfare.  The 
too  often  controlling  argument,  that  the  preservation  of  the 
existence  or  power  of  the  party  is  the  one  thing  essential 
for  the  public  safety,  or  that  "  the  party  is  the  State,"  could 
never  weaken  his  conviction,  that  he  was  the  servant  of 
the  State,  an^  not  of  any  party.  His  political  influence, 
however,  was  the  greater  in  general  society ;  and  was  perhaps 
as  potent  as  that  of  any  other  individual  not  in  the  highest 
rfink  of  public  service.  He  was  nominated  for  election  to 
the  House  of  Representatives  in  Congress  at  the  time  when 
Mr.  Nathan  Appleton  was  a  candidate,  as  representing  the 
principle  of  protection  in  opposition  to  that  of  free  trade  ;  but 
ho  withdrew  from  the  canvass  in  order  to  secure  his  friend's 


16 


MEMOIR  OP  WILLIAM   STURGI3. 


!     i 


success.  He  was  an  active  and  influential  member  of  the 
Convention  for  revising  the  Constitution  of  the  State  in  1820. 
For  some  years  preceding  his  death,  he  had  been  the  oldest 
member  of  the  Boston  Marine  Society,  of  which  he  was  for 
a  time  the  President.  He  was  an  honorary  member  of 
the  Massachusetts  Mechanics'  Charitable  Association ;  and  a 
member  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society,  to  whoso 
archives  he  made  important  contributions,  and  to  whose  funds 
he  was  a  liberal  benefactor. 

Of  the  character,  intellectual  ability,  and  varied  attainments 
of  Mr.  Sturgis,  there  happily  remain  memorials  highly  valu- 
able and  interesting,  which,  for  the  sake  of  history,  and  in 
justice  to  his  memory,  should  be  put  in  a  permanent  form. 
They  consist  of  his  "  Diary,  or  Journal  of  his  First  Voyage  " ; 
"  Three  Lectures  upon  the  North-west  Coast,"  originally  de- 
livered before  the  Mercantile  Library  Association  in  1845-6, 
and  subsequently,  by  request,  before  the  members  of  the 
House  of  Representatives ;  an  article  in  the  "  North-American 
Review"  in  1822,  (vol.  xv.,  art.  18,  p.  370,)  upon  the  subject 
of  "  The  Claims  of  Russia  upon  the  North-west  Coast " ;  a 
pamphlet  containing  the  substance  of  a  Lecture  upon  the 
Oregon  Question  in  1845;  and  two  articles  upon  the  tragedy 
on  board  the  United  States  brig-of-war  "  Somers,"  printed  in 
the  "Semi-weekly  Courier"  of  Aug.  7,  1843,  entitled  "The 
Somers  Mutiny." 

The  most  interesting  portion  of  his  life,  as  affording  means 
for  contemplating  the  formation  and  the  peculiarities  of  his 
character,  was  that  which  began  with  his  first  voyage  to  the 
North-west  Coast  at  sixteen  years  of  age,  and  ended  with 
his  last  expedition  abroad,  from  which  he  returned  at  the  age 
of  twenty-eight,  after  attaining  a  measure  of  success,  in  knowl- 
edge, reputation,  and  wealth,  which  might  satisfy  the  reason- 
able hopes  of  most  men,  if  it  were  the  result  of  a  long  life 
ardently  devoted  to  the  pursuit. 

The  "Diary"  contains  not  only  the  records  of  events  of 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


17 


ordinary  daily  interest  (us  the  courses  of  the  vessel,  and  barters 
with  the  natives  and  others),  which  might  be  made  in  moments 
snatched  from  duty  or  rest,  but  full  descriptions  of  the  places 
visited,  of  the  various  tribes,  of  the  modes  of  traffic,  of  the 
manners  and  habits  of  the  Indians,  interspersed  with  occa- 
sional impressive  descriptions  of  scenery,  and  with  anecdotes 
characteristic  of  savage  life.  And  with  them  are  mingled 
citations  from  Shakspeare,  Milton,  and  Goldsmith ;  indicating, 
that,  amid  all  the  severe  and  engrossing  labors  of  his  daily 
life,  this  boy-man  was  nourishing  the  germs  of  a  literary  taste, 
which  was  to  ornament,  and  minister  to  the  happiness  and  use- 
fulness of,  his  maturer  years.  "  Ossian  "  was  one  of  his  favorite 
books  at  sea ;  and,  to  the  mind  of  a  young  man,  turning  from 
the  exhausting  drudgeries  of  daily  toil  to  seek  literary*  food 
in  pastures  of  his  own  choosing,  there  was  a  not  unaccount- 
able affinity  in  the  tone  and  sentiment  of  that  vague  and 
mystical  poetry  with  the  wild  and  often  sublime  solitudes  of 
the  North-west  Coast,  where  so  many  of  his  days,  and  watches 
of  the  night,  were  passed. 

In  this  "  Diary,"  also,  are  contained  tables  of  the  longitude 
and  latitude  of  every  place  visited,  and  of  the  number  of  skins 
acquired;  also  a  sort  of  dictionary  or  list  of  the  most  fa- 
miliar Indian  words,  —  the  English  in  one  column,  and  those 
of  the  several  tribes  opposite  to  them  in  corresponding  ones, 
—  evidencing  the  pains  he  took  for  the  accurate  learning  of 
their  languages.  Of  these  he  became  so  thoroughly  a 
master,  that,  as  the  writer  of  this  Memoir  has  been  recently 
informed  by  one,  who,  engaged  in  the  like  enterprises,  saw 
him  upon  the  Coast,  he  could  not  only  carry  on  the  trade 
with  the  natives,  and  converse  with  them  easily  about  matters 
of  ordinary  intercourse  in  their  own  tongues,  but  could  freely 
discuss  with  them  any  other  topics  in  which  they  were  inter- 
ested, including  themes  of  religion,  philosophy,  and  morals, 
as  well  as  of  trade ;  and  could  banter  and  exchange  repartees 
with  them  as  familiarly  as  any  one  of  their  number.     The 

8 


18 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STUROIS. 


same  gentleman  states  further,  that  his  popularity  with  the 
Indian  chiefs  was  unbounded ;  that  ho  was  universally  known, 
welcomed,  and  trusted ;  and  that  he  exercised  an  influence 
among  them,  to  which  no  white  man  ever  before  attained,  and 
in  which  no  chief  excelled  him. 

He  not  only  kept  this  minute  and  accurate  record  of  all  the 
transactions  relating  to  his  own  vessel  and  his  trade,  but  one 
also  of  all  the  vessels  which  they  met  on  the  Coast,  or  of  which 
they  could  obtain  any  account ;  —  of  their  voyages,  the  places 
they  visited,  the  number  of  skins  they  obtained,  and  all  the 
other  incidents  tending  to  a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  business. 
His  "  Journal  "  is  replete  with  criticisms  and  comments  upon 
the  manner  of  conducting  the  trade,  and  the  vices,  faults,  follies, 
and  mistakes  of  those  engaged  in  it;  evincing  a  clearness  of 
vision,  maturity  of  judgment,  and  decision  of  character,  truly 
wonderful  in  a  lad  of  seventeen  years  of  age ;  and  winding 
up  with  a  detailed  statement  of  the  course  to  be  pursued  in 
order  to  make  a  successful  voyage. 

By  the  extensive  knowledge  of  details  which  he  was  ever 
careful  to  obtain,  and  by  a  constant  study  of  the  various  ele- 
ments and  phases  of  the  business  in  which  he  was  engaged,  he 
afterwards  became  enabled  to  foresee  the  fluctuations  and 
changes  which  would  necessarily  follow  the  precipitate  em- 
barkation in  it  of  numerous  adventurers  whom  its  profitable- 
ness would  soon  allure,  and  thus  to  avoid  their  miscalculations 
and  the  mischances  which  befell  most  of  them,  and  to  accumu- 
late wealth  for  himself  and  his  employers,  while  many  others 
at  the  same  time  encountered  only  ruinous  losses. 

There  are  upon  record  instances  of  marvellous  precocity 
in  poetical  invention,  and  in  limited  departments  of  science, 
which  have  excited  the  astonishment  and  admiration  of  the 
wuild ;  but  it  may  well  be  doubted  whether  any  such  instance 
can  be  accounted  more  surprising,  in  its  kind,*than  this,  of 
practical  ability  in  a  youth,  leaping  as  it  were  in  an  instant 
from  the  forecastle  to  the  quarter-deck  an  accomplished  navi- 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


19 


gator,  endowed  with  the  irresistible  power  of  command,  which 
a  strange  and  mutinous  crew  could  not  but  obey ;  —  speedily 
attaining,  as  if  by  intuition,  a  knowledge  of  the  principles, 
details,  complications,  and  whole  scope  of  a  newly  discovered 
trade  on  a  far-distant,  savage  coast ;  with  a  knowledge,  also, 
of  human  nature,  and  a  tact  in  controlling  men,  both  civilized 
and  savage,  which  very  few  in  long  lives  of  service  among 
them  acquire;  —  governing  and  governed  by  the  principles 
of  an  inflexible  justice  and  by  a  high  sense  of  honor;  —  and 
mingling  with  the  severest  of  human  labors  and  responsi- 
bilities the  habitual  cultivation  of  literary  taste. 

The  following  are  extracts  from  the  "  Diary,"  on  his  first 
arrival  on  the  Coast,  a  few  days  before  entering  upon  his 
eighteenth  year,  with  no  other  opportunities  for  mental  cul- 
ture than  those  above  stated,  and  none  for  this  sort  of  com- 
position but  such  as  could  be  snatched  at  intervals  from 
tlie  laborious  drudgery  and  miscellaneous  interruptions  of  life 
in  the  forecastle. 

Here  are  two  descriptions  of  scenery  in  Norfolk  Sound :  — 


"The  appearance  of  the  country  here  is  really  romantic.  On  one 
side  of  us,  within  pistol-shot,  and  Avhich  seems  in  the  evening  almost 
as  if  you  could  touch  it,  is  a  thick  spruce  wood,  extending  close  to  the 
water's  edge,  frowning  in  native  horror,  and  looks  to  be  only  fit  for 
wild  beasts  to  prowl  in :  on  the  other  side  appears  a  mixture  of  land 
and  water.  At  short  distances  are  passages  which  either  run  inland, 
or,  by  joining,  cut  the  country  up  into  small  islands.  Some  of  them 
are  not  much  larger  than  the  ship,  and  numbers  much  smaller.  They 
are  composed  of  rocks  rising  just  clear  of  the  surface  of  the  water, 
on  which  is  sprinkled  a  little  soil ;  and  from  this  rises  a  thick  cluster 
of  tall  spruce-trees,  which,  in  the  tout  ensemble,  look  very  handsome, 
and  often  bring  to  my  mind  the  romantic  little  Island  of  Poplars,  in 
which  is  Rousseau's  tomb.  Add  to  this  the  melancholy  sighing  of  the 
wind  among  the  pines.  But  a  truce  to  descriptions  ;  and  let  me  pro- 
ceed to  business 

"  The  place  where  we  walked  was  all  rocks ;  and,  on  the  shore- 
side  of  us,  they  rose  like  a  barrier,  in  some  places  full  an  hundred 


li 


so  MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   STUROIS. 

feet  perpendicultir.  On  the  tops  of  those  (which  overhung  all  the 
beach  beyond  the  Point)  again  are  tall  spruce-trees,  which  seem  to 
grow  on  the  edge  of  the  precipices  as  plenty  and  as  thick  as  on  the 
lowland.  Some  of  them,  which  had  advanced  their  heads  too  high 
for  the  feeble  support  their  roots  afforded,  had  shared  the  fate  of  all 
such  foolish  pretenders,  by  being  dashed  from  the  pinnacle  to  the 
bottom  of  the  precipice  ;  and,  with  their  roots  still  clinging  to  the 
rocks  above,  and  their  heads  on  the  beach  below,  offered  an  instruc- 
tive example  to  thousands,  who,  by  presuming  on  as  slight  founda- 
tions, have  no  right  to  expect  aught  but  the  same  fate.  ...  In  the 
afternoon,  two  large  canoes  came  round  the  East  Point;  and,  as  they 
turned  it,  all  joined  in  a  war-song,  which  they  rattled  off  with  spirit 
quite  handsomely.  Upon  their  approach,  we  found  that  they  each 
contained  a  petty  chief,  and  about  nine  young  men.  The  chiefs,  who 
were  both  good-looking  men,  and  carried  themselves  with  great 
dignity,  sat  upon  a  high  box  in  the  middle  of  the  canoes.  They  had 
beards  about  two  inches  long,  with  a  considerable  pair  of  whiskers ; 
and  wore  very  long  hair^-which,  by  what  we  could  understand,  was 
taken  from  the  heads  of  their  enemies  killed  in  battle.  The  tops  of 
their  heads  were  powdered  with  small  geese-down ;  and  a  long  red 
and  yellow  feather,  painted,  which  rose  over  all,  completed  the  head- 
dress. In  their  ears  they  wore  a  kind  of  shell  of  pearl,  which  is  of 
some  value  here,  and,  when  the  coast  was  first  visited,  was  esteemed 
of  very  great.  Over  their  shoulders  they  wore  a  cloth  of  their  own 
manufacture,  about  a  fathom  square,  made  out  of  the  wool  of  their 
mountain  sheep  :  round  the  edges  they  work  in  sea-otter's  fur ;  and,  on 
the  Avhole,  it  makes  a  very  handsome  appearance.  What  they  wore  on 
their  legs  I  could  not  say,  as  they  did  not  condescend  to  rise  from  their 
seats,  but,  after  purchasing  three  or  four  muskets,  lefl  us,  and  went 
on  shore.  All  the  young  men  in  the  canoes  had  their  faces  daubed 
with  red  and  black,  and  their  heads  powdered  with  red  ochre  and 
geese-down.  This,  though  no  doubt  only  what  is  conformable  to 
their  ideas  of  beauty,  yet  made  them  look  not  far  unlike  Milton's  de- 
cription  of  Death,  — '  Fierce  as  ten  furies,  terrible  as  hell.*  " 

The  following  is  an  account  of  a  visit  to  an  Indian  habi- 
tation :  — 

"  Alsatree  now  took  me  by  the  hand,  and  led  me  towards  the 
house.  In  entering  it,  you  may  well  imagine  my  astonishment,  when, 
instead  of  six  or  eight  people,  as  I  expected,  I  beheld  about  forty 


II 


MEMOIR  OF  WILLIAM   STUROIS. 


21 


people  —  men,  women,  nml  children  —  seated  around  an  enormous  fire, 
which  was  made  in  the  middle  of  tlic  house.  Some  were  employed 
in  making  flsh-hooktrfor  halilxit  •  some,  wood.n  bowls.  The  women 
wore  busy  broiling  and  boiling  halibut  ;  the  childrvu,  waiting  upon 
the  old  folks ;  and  several  'f  the  females,  who  were  not  slaves, 
making  wooden  lips.  At  my  entrance,  labor  stood  suspended  ;  and 
they  looked  at  me  with  about  as  much  astonishment  as  Hamlet,  when 
he  first  saw  his  father's  ghost." 

It  appears  that  affection  and  sentiment  are  not  exclusively 
confined,  as  seems  sometimes  to  be  supposed,  to  what  we  call 
the  civilized  heart.  Speaking  of  the  death  of  Captain  New- 
bury, who  had  acquired  the  confidence  and  friendship  of  the 
Indians  by  his  kindness  and  justice,  a  chief  said:  — 

*'  Newbury  —  a  good  man  1  He  is  now  gone  to  a  good  country,  and 
I  shall  not  see  him  again :  but  I  have  his  chest  at  my  house  in  which 
he  kept  his  clrthes ;  and,  when  I  look  at  it,  I  think  of  him. 

•  •  •  •  • 

"  Mr.  Bumstead  and  myself  went  on  shore  on  the  beach,  and  took 
a  walk  through  their  huts.  There  were  about  fourteen,  with  eleven 
or  twelve  persons  around  each ;  and  they  did  not  look  unlike  what 
our  imagination  pictures  to  us  of  bands  of  robbers  seated  around 
their  fires  in  some  dark  forest,  Avhere  they  waylay  the  unwary 
traveller.  They,  however,  so  far  from  molesting,  treated  us  with  the 
greatest  civility  ;  and,  as  we  passed  each  tent,  would  insist  upon  our 
sitting  down  with  them.  But,  after  having  seen  those  we  knew,  and 
shaken  hands  with  all,  we  returned  immediately  on  board.  We  saw 
Shanakate,  the  Great  Eater  ;  and  though  supperless,  yet  he  appeared 
happy,  surrounded  by  his  children,  whose  faces,  newly  varnished  Avith 
train  oil  and  red  ochre,  shone  by  the  light  of  the  fire  like  the  body 
of  a  chaise  newly  painted,  and  verified  Goldsmith's  description  of  a 
port  of  rural  felicity,  where  the  fond  father 

*  Smiles  at  his  cheerful  fire,  and  round  surveys 
His  children's  looks,  that  brighten  with  the  bluze.' " 


There  are  several  notices  of  cases  where  chiefs  had  been 
entrapped  on  board  of  vessels,  and  confined  in  irons  until 


22 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


compelled  to  regain  their  freedom  by  heavy  ransoms, 
following  is  one  of  them :  — 


The 


"  He  [one  of  the  chiefs],  however,  would  not  venture  himself  on 
board  of  us ;  having  been  several  times  made  prisoner  by  different 
vessels,  and  obliged  to  ransom  himself  by  giving  up  the  greatest  part 
of  his  skins.  This  was  the  Avay  some  people,  not  worthy  of  the  name 
of  men  (and  who,  I  thank  Heaven,  cannot  call  themselves  Americans), 
took  to  make  their  fortunes.  C ,  C ,  and  Alsatree,  the  prin- 
cipal chiefs  on  the  coast,  they  trepanned  on  board  their  ships ;  and, 
having  seized  and  laid  some  of  ♦':om  in  irons,  forced  them,  contrary 
to  every  principle  of  honor  or  humanity,  to  deliver  up  their  skins 
before  they  would  give  them  their  liberty." 

From  the  earlier  entries  in  the  "Journal,"  it  appears, 
that,  when  he  arrived  upon  the  Coast,  the  author  was  imbued 
with  all  the  prejudices  against  the  Indians,  which,  at  that 
period,  prevailed  so  universally  among  his  countrymen,  and  the 
sources  of  which  he  attempts  in  the  third  Lecture  to  explain. 
This  circumstance  invests  his  subsequent  opinions,  formed 
after  long  and  familiar  personal  acquaintance  with  them,  and 
very  peculiar  opportunities  for  careful  and  extensive  observa- 
tion, with  a  peculiar  interest  and  truthfulness.  And  so  keenly 
did  he  always  feel  and  express  himself  upon  the  subject,  that 
probably  no  thought  would  have  cheered  his  dying  hour  more 
gratefully,  than  that  he  should  be  instrumental  in  leaving  on 
record  a  testimonial  in  their  behalf. 

The  three  "Lectures"  are  particularly  valuable  for  their 
developmentof  the  habits  of  life  and  the  moral  and  intellectual 
characters  of  those  Indian  tribes  by  one  who  lived  with  them 
on  terms  of  familiar  and  confiding  friendship,  and  as  constitut- 
ing the  most  important  and  trustworthy  record,  if  not  the 
only  one,  of  their  later,  soon  to  become  their  final,  history. 
Nor  are  they  less  strikingly  illustrative  of  the  noble  traits  of 
character  of  their  author  in  the  details  of  his  intercourse  with 
the  Indians,  and  of  the  efforts  which  he  ever  loved  to  make,  in 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


23 


public  and  in  private,  to  vindicate  them  from  the  obloquy  and 
hatred  of  which  they  have  been  too  generally  and  thought- 
lessly the  objects. 

His  opportunities  were  such  as  particularly  qualified  him 
for  this  undertaking,  since  his  first  visit  to  the  Coast  was  made 
in  1799,  about  twenty  years  after  Cook's  discovery  of  Nootka 
Sound,  and  while  the  generation  was  still  living  that  "  wit- 
nessed the  arrival  of  the  first  white  man  among  them ;  and 
many  of  the  very  individuals  who  were  prominent  at  the 
time  of  Cook's  visit  were  still  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  became 
personally  known  to  him."  He  passed  a  number  of  years 
among  them  at  the  time  when  they  were  first  becoming  known 
to  the  civilized  world,  and  were  in  a  state  approximating  to  that 
in  which  the  discoverers  of  the  northern  portion  of  our  conti- 
nent found  the  aboriginal  inhabitants ;  and  he  continued  to  carry 
on  the  trade  with  them,  personally  or  by  agents,  until  it  ceased 
to  be  valuable,  —  witnessing  its  growth,  maximum,  decrease, 
and  final  abandonment  by  the  citizens  of  the  United  States. 

The  "  Lectures  "  are  written  in  a  clear,  simple,  and  ex- 
pressive style,  indicating  familiarity  with  English  literature, 
and  at  times  exhibiting  the  truest  eloquence  in  sentiment 
and  description. 

Although  requested  for  the  press  by  the  appreciative 
audience  to  which  they  were  originally  addressed,  and  after- 
wards by  others,  the  author  uniformly  declined  to  publish 
them,  from  distrust,  as  is  understood,  of  their  value.  They 
are,  however,  well  worthy  of  being  perpetuated,  as  interesting 
and  authentic  memorials  of  a  very  important  though  temporary 
department  of  commercial  enterprise,  and  of  the  manners  and 
characters  of  a  people  now  rapidly  becoming  extinct;  and 
also  as  a  vindication  of  the  natives  from  the  unmerited  re- 
proaches heaped  upon  them  by  the  corrupters,  oppressors, 
and  murderers  of  their  race. 

His  feelings  upon  this  subject  are  thus  emphatically  ex- 
pressed at  the  commencement  of  the  first  Lecture:  — 


I 
'■U: 


''  Vk 


mil!  I 


24 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


"  These  early  visits  gave  me  the  opportunity,  too,  of  observing 
changes  in  the  habits  and  manners  of  the  Indians,  effected  by  inter- 
course with  a  more  civilized  race ;  and,  I  regret  to  add,  brought 
to  my  knowledge  the  injustice,  violence,  and  bloodshed  which  have 
marked  the  progress  of  this  intercourse  from  first  to  last.  I  cannot 
expect  that  others  will  feel  the  adme  degree  of  interest  in  these 
reminiscences  that  I  feel ;  but  I  have  thought  that  they  might  en- 
gage your  attention  for  a  while,  and  perhaps  awaken  sympathy  for 
the  remnant  of  a  race  fast  disappearing  from  the  earth,  —  victims  of 
injustice,  cruelty,  and  oppression,  and  of  a  policy  that  seems  to  recog- 
nize power  as  the  sole  standard  of  right." 

Again,  near  the  close :  — 

"  The  numerous  tragical  occurrences  on  the  Coast  show  the  per- 
sonal hazards  incurred  by  those  engaged  in  the  trade,  and  perhaps 
warrant  the  remark  of  Mr.  Greenhow,  in  his  valuable  memoir  upon 
Oregon,  prepared  by  order  of  Congress.  Speaking  of  the  American 
trade  upon  the  Coast,  he  says :  '  The  persons  engaged  in  this  trade 
were  constantly  exposed  to  the  most  dreadful  hardships  and  dangers, 
against  which  nothing  but  extraordinary  courage  and  skill  on  their 
part  could  have  enabled  them  to  struggle  successfully.  More  than 
one  American  ship  has  been  seized,  and  all  on  board  massacred,  by 
the  natives  of  the  Pacific  coasts ;  and  seldom,  indeed,  did  a  vessel 
from  the  United  States  complete  her  voyage  in  that  ocean,  without 
losing  some  part  of  her  crew  by  the  treachery  of  those  with  whom 
they  were  dealing.'  Mr.  Greenhow  and  myself  agree,  in  the  main, 
as  to  the  facts,  but  are  at  issue  as  to  the  cause.  He  ascribes  it  to 
the  treachery  and  ferocity  of  the  Indians  ;  I,  with  better  opportunities 
for  investigating  and  ascertaining  the  truth,  find  the  cause  in  the 
lawless  and  brutal  violence  of  white  men :  and  it  would  be  easy  to 
show  that  these  fatal  disasters  might  have  been  averted  by  a  different 
treatment  of  the  natives,  and  by  prudence  and  proper  precaution  on 
the  part  of  their  civilized  visitors." 

The  second  Lecture  is  more  particularly  devoted  to  the 
ciiaracter,  manners,  and  domestic  habits  of  the  Indians.  The 
following  description  will  probably  surprise  many  who  have 
been  accustomed  to  look  upon  them  as  little  better  than 
beasts  of  the  field ;   and,  rightly  considered,  might  do  some- 


i 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


25 


thing  towards  improving  and  elevating  the  domestic  rehitions 
of  parent  and  cliild,  as  generally  acted  upon  even  in  highly 
civilized  Christian  communities  :  — 

"  The  Indians  of  whom  I  speak  are  piscatory  in  their  pursuits ; 
reside  upon  the  borders  of  the  sea,  from  which  they  draw  their  prin- 
cipal subsistence  ;  and  use  altogether  the  canop,  both  for  this  purpose 
and  for  transporting  themselves  and  families  from  place  to  place. 
Their  migrations  are  limited  to  a  change  of  residence  from  one  per- 
manent village  to  another  at  different  seasons  of  the  year,  following 
the  periodical  movements  of  the  several  species  of  fish  upon  which 
they  mainly  depend  for  food ;  and  to  trading  excursions,  which  are 
often  made,  sometimes  to  distant  points,  visiting  tribes  residing  several 
h  mdred  miles,  from  their  own  village.  Upon  these  occasions  they 
are  usually  accompanied  by  their  women  and  children,  who  are 
adroit  and  skilful  in  the  management  of  canoes,  and,  in  taking  and 
curing  fish,  are  as  efficient  as  the  men  themselves.  These  circum- 
stances, exercising  a  material  influence  upon  their  domestic  and  social 
character,  have,  in  a  degree,  softened  the  naturally  stern  nature  of 
these  Indians,  and  rendered  them  less  sanguinary  than  the  tribes  in 
tlie  interior.  War,  however,  is  not  unfrequent ;  and  bravery  and 
skill  in  conducting  it  ai'e  qualities  commanding  as  high  admiration 
and  respect  as  among  the  most  warlike  people  :  and  the  Indian  upon 
the  borders  of  the  Pacific  accords  to  an  accomplished  and  successful 
destroyer  of  his  fellow-men  the  same  pre-eminence  that  is  conceded 
to  him  by  the  most  civilized  nations.  In  their  domestic  relations,  they 
manifest  as  much  tenderness  and  nffcciion  as  can  he  found  in  any  state 
of  society.  The  constant  presence  of  their  women  gives  to  them  a 
proper  influence ;  and  their  position,  though  subordinate  in  some 
respects,  is,  upon  the  whole,  as  favorable  as  that  occupied  by  their 
sex  in  civilized  life,  —  nominal  submission,  actual  control.  Children 
are  uniformly  treated  loith  tenderness  and  indulgence,  seldom  punished, 
and  never  sfrnch. 

"  Tiie  Indian  doctrine  is,  that  it  may  be  necessary  to  beat  dogs, 
but  not  to  strike  a  child.  The  children,  on  their  part,  seem  intui- 
tively respectful  and  submissive  to  their  seniors.  I  do  not  recollect 
io  have  seen  punishment  inflicted  upon  a  child  but  in  a  single  instance, 
and  then  not  very  severely.  A  woman,  with  a  family  of  children, 
was  alongside  of  the  ship  in  her  canoe,  making  some  purchases ;  and, 
among  other  articles,  she  obtained  a  quantity  of  molasses,  which  was 


11 


26 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


put  into  a  large  tub  in  her  canoe.  A  little  naked  urchin,  two  or  three 
years  old,  half  covered  Avith  oil  and  dirt,  made  repeated  attempts  to 
get  at  the  molasses,  much  to  the  mother's  annoyance.  At  length,  in 
a  great  pet,  she  caught  the  child  by  the  arms,  and  plunged  it  into  the 
tub,  leaving  it  seated  in  the  viscid  substance  up  to  its  chin.  The 
child  bore  the  punishment  with  as  much  stoicism,  and  employed  him- 
self in  the  same  manner,  as  a  young  Yankee  would  have  done. 

"  The  only  occasion  upon  which  blows  are  inflicted  is  in  the  prac- 
tice of  a  singular  custom  among  them.  At  times  during  the  Avinter, 
in  a  cold,  frosty  morning,  all  the  boys  of  a  village,  from  five  to  ten 
years  old,  assemble  upon  a  sandy  beach  in  a  state  of  nudity ;  and, 
each  having  furnished  himself  with  a  bunch  of  rods,  they  wade  into 
the  Avater  up  to  their  armpits :  and  then  commences  an  uproarious 
scene  ;  each  one  using  his  rods  Avith  his  whole  strength  in  thrashing 
every  one  Avho  comes  Avithin  his  reach,  ahvays  giA'ing  a  preference  to 
those  of  his  own  size.  This  continues  for  some  time ;  when,  at  a 
given  signal,  a  general  plunge  and  a  short  SAvim  finishes  the  frolic, 
and  they  resume  their  garments  and  their  gi'avity.  The  Indians 
say  that  this  practice  hardens  the  bodies  of  the  little  felloAvs,  and  the 
flagellation  they  get  loosens  their  skins,'  and  thus  promotes  their 
growth." 

These  untaught  savages  do  not  appear  to  have  attained  to 
the  scientific  discovery  in  favor  of  the  flagellation  of  children, 
—  that  it  is  salutary  as  a  counter-irritant,  in  order  to  relieve 
irritation  within ;  but  they  seem  to  have  found  out  what  may  be 
more  valuable,  namely,  the  means  of  preventing  it.  It  proba- 
bly had  never  occurred  to  them  as  a  convenient  safety-valve 
for  letting  oif  the  impatience,  spleen,  or  ill-temper  of  the 
parent. 

A  conversation  with  a  chief  concerning  the  ornaments  with 
Avhich  the  Indians  are  accustomed  to  adorn  themselves  is  alike 
amusing  and  suggestive :  — 

"•  Their  fancy  for  many  articles  could  be  traced  to  a  desire  to  imi- 
tate their  somewhat  more  polished  visitors ;  and  the  absurdity,  if 
any  there  Avas,  lay  in  the  manner  in  Avhich  they  used  tliem.  When 
attacked  upon  this  point,  they  AA'ould  dryly  refer  to  some  of  our 
usages  as  equally  absurd  with  their  own.     Talking  one  day  upon  such 


MEMOIR  OP  WILLIAM  STURGI8. 


27 


matters  with  Altadsce,  a  sarcastic  old  chief  of  the  Hanslong  tribe, 
I  ridiculed  the  practice  of  covering  their  own  and  their  children's 
garments  with  rows  of  brass  and  gilt  buttons,  and  loading  them  with 
old  keys,  to  be  kept  bright  at  a  great  expense  of  labor.  '  Why,'  said 
he,  '  the  white  men  wear  buttons.'  — '  True,'  I  replied  ;  •  but  they  are 
useful  to  us  :  the  fashion  of  our  garments  requires  buttons  to  secure 
them.'  — '  Ah  !  *  said  he,  '  perhaps  it  is  so  ;  but  I  could  never  discover 
the  usefulness  of  half  a  dozen  buttons  upon  your  coat-tails  :  and,  as  for 
the  waste  of  labor  in  scouring  old  keys,  you  are  right ;  it  is  very  fool- 
ish, and  almost  as  ridiculous  as  the  fashion,  which  I  am  told  prevails 
in  your  country,  of  placing  brass  balls  upon  iron  fences  in  front  of  your 
houses,  to  be  polished  every  day,  and  tarnished  every  night.  Truly,' 
he  added,  '  Eijets  hardi  and  Hanslong  hardi  cootnanous  coonnug ' 
('White  people  and  Hanslong  people  are  equally  foolish ')." 

Their  dwellings,  furniture,  and  household  ornaments  are 
thus  described:  — 

"  Their  dwellings  are  of  a  more  permanent  character  than  those 
of  the  Indians  in  the  interior.  In  the  winter  villages,  some  of  the 
houses  are  quite  large,  covered  with  boards,  and  probably  as  com- 
fortable as  the  houses  in  London  and  Paris  are  represented  to  have 
been  five  centuries  ago.  I  have  seen  houses  upon  the  southern  part 
of  the  Coast  more  than  one  hundred  feet  in  length,  and  forty  in 
breadth ;  and  Jewett,  who  was  two  years  a  prisoner  among  them, 
describes  Maquinna's  house  at  Nootka  as  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet 
long.  In  articles  of  furniture,  either  for  use  or  ornament,  they  are 
quite  deficient ;  and  their  mode  of  living  is  so  simple,  that  little  is 
required.  The  only  ornamental  articles  I  recollect  to  have  seen  in 
their  houses  were  copper  tea-kettles.  These  we  imported  from  Hol- 
land, and  carried  to  the  Coast  in  large  quantities.  It  would  have  been 
almost  sacrilege  among  the  Indians  to  have  degraded  this  beautiful 
piece  of  furniture,  as  they  esteemed  it,  to  culinary  uses.  It  was 
placed  in  an  elevated  and  conspicious  position  in  the  house,  kept  per- 
fectly bright,  and  regarded  with  as  much  solicitude  and  care  as  I 
have  elsewhere  seen  beotowed  upon  a  tawdry  French  vase,  filled  with 
showy  artificial  flowers,  and  carefully  covered  with  a  glass  case." 

Of  their  usual  denaeanor,  he  says :  — 

"  The  Indians  are  not  a  joyous  race,  and  have  few  amusements. 
The  only  public  ones  are  singing  and  dancing,  and  these  not  in  a  style 


ill' 


28 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


-Is: 


f 

i; 

!j 

I! 


!i 


calculated  to  inspire  or  indulge  mirth.  The  women  take  no  active 
part  in  the  dance  ;  but  their  pleasant  voices  are  often  heard  in  song, 
sometimes  with  great  sweetness  and  pathos.  Tiieir  musical  instru- 
ments are  a  hollow  cylinder,  used  as  a  drum,  and  rattles  of  various 
sorts  ;  but  they  are  only  used  to  mark  time,  and  stimulate  the  dancers, 
who  take  great  pains  to  prepare  themselves  for  the  occasion,  and  only 
appear  in  full  dress.  When  engaged  in  the  war-dance,  they  cover 
the  head  with  scalps  taken  from  their  enemies,  the  hair  filled  with  the 
down  of  sea-fowl  or  the  eagle.  Their  mode  of  scalping  adapts  it  to 
this  purpose;  for  they  take  off  the  whole  skin  of  the  head,  preserving 
ji.  entire,  with  the  hair  attached.  I  cannoi  commend  their  grace  in 
the  dance  ;  but  their  spirit  is  worthy  of  imitation.  They  engage  in 
it  with  some  life  and  animation :  at  least  it  was  easy  to  discover 
whether  the  dancers  were  awake  or  asleep,  —  a  fact  not  readily  ascer- 
tained in  modern  days  in  more  polished  communities." 

After  commenting  upon  the  imperfect,  prejudiced,  and  par- 
tial descriptions  of  Indian  character  generally  to  be  found  in 
books  and  in  the  stories  of  iravellers,  Mr.  Sturgis  thus  an- 
nounces the  result  of  his  own  observation  and  otudy  of  it:  — 

"  My  own  opportunities  were  favorable  for  observing  and  estimat- 
ing Indian  character ;  but,  even  with  a  close  and  long-continued 
intimacy  under  circumstances  that  tended  to  dispel  the  reserve  that 
an  Indian  maintains  in  his  intercourse  with  strangers,  I  found  it 
scarcely  possible  to  comprehend,  much  less  to  describe  him,  or  to 
understand  his  motive  for  much  that  he  does.  Ilis  character  is  made 
up  of  incongruous  and  seemingly  conflictiug  elements.  The  ncjjlest 
impulses  and  best  feelings  of  man's  nature  are  in  him  closely  allied 
to  brutal  propensities ;  and  the  bright  and  dark  hues  are  so  mixed 
and  blended,  that  at  times  they  are  scarcely  distinguishable,  and  seem 
lost  in  one  another.  He  is,  even  to  those  who  have  most  carefully 
studied  him,  a  mystti'ious  being,  and  must  remain  so  ;  for  we  cannot 
fully  comprehend  his  impulses  and  motives :  and  doubtless  Mr. 
Schqplcraft  is  correct  in  reuuirking,  as  he  does,  that  '  the  civilized 
man  is  no  less  a  mysterious  and  unaccountable  being  to  an  Indian, 
because  his  springs  of  action  are  alike  unintelligible  to  him.'  But, 
while  it  may  not  be  possible  to  comprehend  all  the  anomalies  of  In- 
dian character,  enough  may  be  discovered  and  understood  to  i>tit'.<j 
him  to  much  higher  consideration  than  he  usually  enjoys.     Few  have 


MEMOIR  OF  WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


29 


the  opportunity  to  make  a  just  estimate  of  this  race.  Those  who 
form  an  opinion  of  them  from  the  wretched,  degraded  remnants  of 
the  tribes  who  formerly  occupied  New  England,  such  as  the  Penobscots 
and  others,  or  from  delegations  <'iom  more  distant  tribes  that  are 
occasionally  paraded  about  and  exhibited,  like  wild  animals,  as  a 
show,  will  do  the  Indian  great  injustice,  and  have  a  very  erroneous 
impression.  To  judge  the  Indian  fairly,  he  must  be  seen,  as  I  have 
seen  him,  in  his  native  forest,  before  he  biicomcs  contaminated  by 
intercourse  with  civilized  men  ;  for,  to  our  reproach  be  it  spoken, 
contamination  and  degradation  invariably  and  speedily  follow  such 
intercourse. 

"  In  this  original  state,  while  he  retains  his  independence,  and  pre- 
serves self-respect,  he  is  proud  even  of  existence ;  and  it  is  not  a 
mere  poetical  fiction  in  the  writer  who  says,  that  '  the  Indian  in  iiis 
primitive  state  stands  erect,  his  foot  firmly  planted  upon  his  motlier 
earth,  surveys  the  wide  expanse  of  Nature,  and,  with  conscious  superi- 
ority, strikes  his  breast,  and  exclaims  exultingly,  "  I  am  a  man  "  ! '  I 
have  at  times  perceived  the  workings  of  strong  and  lofty  I'eeliiigs  in 
the  Indian's  bosom,  that  could  not  be  more  truly  or  happily  expressed. 
Mr.  Catlin,  with  all  his  frippery,  has  given  many  interesting  facts 
respecting  remote  Indians,  who,  at  the  time  of  his  visit,  were  little 
changed  by  the  intrusion  of  civilization ;  and  I  doubt  not  his  state- 
ments may  be  relied  on,  with  some  little  allowance  for  his  evident 
partiality  for  the  red  man.  His  conclusion,  after  a  long  residence 
among  them,  is,  in  his  own  words,  that  '  the  North-American  Indian, 
in  his  primitive  state,  is  a  high-minded,  honorable,  hospitable  being ' ; 
and  in  another  passage  he  asserts,  that  'the  North-American  Indian, 
in  his  native  state,  is  an  honest,  hospitable,  faithful,  brave,  warlike, 
cruel,  revengeful,  relentless,  yet  honorable,  contemplative,  and  re- 
ligious being.'  My  own  experience  does  not  lead  me  to  dissent  from 
this  opinion.  It  ma^  sound  strange  y  to  hear  the  Indian  spoken  of 
as  a  religious  being ;  but,  if  a  constant  reference  in  all  that  he  does 
to  the  supposed  will  of  his  Creator  constitutes  a  religious  being,  the 
North-American  Indian  is  eminently  one.  Mr.  Schoolcraft,  speaking 
of  the  great  tribes  of  the  Far  West,  says,  '  It  would  surprise  any  per- 
son to  become  acquainted  with  the  variety  and  extent  to  which  an  In- 
dian is  influenced  by  his  religious  views  and  superstitions  :  he  takes 
no  important  step  Avithout  reference  to  them ;  they  are  his  guiding 
motives  in  peace  and  in  war  ;  he  follows  the  chase  imder  their  influ- 
ence, and  his  very  amusements  take  their  tincture  from  them.' 


i 


I    ^ 


80 


MEMOIR  OP  WILLIAM  8TURGIS. 


"  To  the  Indian,  much  that  we  do  seems  ridiculous  and  absurd ; 
and  some  of  the  practices  of  civilized  life  are  as  revolting  to  his  feel- 
ings as  their  most  barbarous  usages  are  to  ours.  I  have  often  been 
struck  with  the  comments  of  sensible  Indians  upon  what  they  had 
noticed  or  learned  respecting  our  customs,  particularly  by  those  of 
Keow,  the  principal  chief  of  Caigance,  a  place  much  frequented  by 
trading  -  vessels.  Keow  was,  upon  the  whole,  the  most  intelligent 
Indian  I  met  with.  He  was  a  shrewd  observer,  of  quiet  perception, 
with  a  comprehensive  and  discriminating  mind,  and  insatiable  curi- 
osity. He  Avould  occasionally  pass  several  days  at  a  time  on  board 
my  ship ;  and  I  have  often  sat  up  half  the  night  with  him,  answering 
questions,  and  listening  to  his  remarks.  I  have  no  doubt  that  our 
conversation,  first  and  last,  would  fill  several  folio  volumes,  even  in 
the  sight-destroying  type  of  modern  pamphlet -printing.  His  com- 
ments on  some  features  of  our  social  system,  and  upon  the  discrepan- 
cies and  inconsistencies  in  our  professions  and  practice  as  Christians, 
particularly  in  relation  to  war,  duelling,  capital  punishment  for  depre- 
dations upon  property,  and  other  less  important  matters,  were  perti- 
nent and  forcible,  and  by  no  means  flattering  to  us,  or  calculated  to 
nourish  our  self-conceit." 

This  Lecture  closes  with  a  thrilling  description  of  an  Indian 
execution ;  which,  but  for  its  length,  should  be  inserted  here, 
as  a  specimen  of  the  rare  powers  of  Mr.  Sturgis  as  a  writer ; 
and  is  omitted  only  in  the  confident  belief  that  the  whole 
course  of  Lectures  will  soon  be  given  to  the  public,  as  here- 
after suggested. 

The  third  Lecture  is  devoted  to  the  consideration  of  the 
treatment  of  the  Indians  of  the  North-west  Coast  at  the  hands 
of  the  white  man,  "  showing  that  he  was  the  aggressor ;  and 
vindicating  the  red  men  from  the  charge  that  has  often  been 
brought  against  them,  of  wanton  cruelty  and  unprovoked 
barbarity."  Although  evidently  written  under  the  influence 
of  strong  feelings  of  commiseration  for  the  wrongs  inflicted 
upon  this  unhappy  race,  such  as  a  generous  and  lofty  nature 
could  not  but  entertain  in  contemplating  such  a  subject,  the 
statements  made  from  his  personal  knowledge,  and  the  his- 
torical evidence  adduced,  seem  fully  to  sustain  his  conclusion. 


MEMOIR   OP  WILLIAM  STUHOIS. 


31 


It  closes  with  the  following  beautiful  and  touching  declav  i- 
tion,  in  which  his  descendants  may  hold  his  name  embalmv 
in  precious  remembrance,  as  that  of  a  truly  great  and  noblo 
man.  No  one  ever  possessed  a  larger  power  for  evil  or  for 
good,  with  perfect  impunity  in  its  exercise,  than  William 
Sturgis  possessed  on  the  North-west  Coast ;  and  no  man  ever 
exercised  it  with  profounder  humanity,  more  inflexible  justice, 
a  more  conscientious  sense  of  responsibility,  and  greater  kind- 
ness, than  he  displayed  towards  these  uncivilized,  helpless, 
and  outraged  inhabitants  of  the  wilderness. 

"  When  I  call  np  the  past,  and  look  back  upon  tlie  trials  and 
dangers  of  my  early  pursuits,  it  is  Avith  feelings  that  I  should  vainly 
attempt  to  describe.  I  have  cause  for  gratitude  to  a  higher  Power, 
not  only  for  escape  from  danger,  but  for  being  spared  all  participation 
in  the  deadly  conflicts  and  murderous  scenes  which  at  times  sur- 
rounded me.  I  may  well  be  grateful  that  no  blood  of  the  red  man 
ever  stained  my  hands ;  that  no  shades  of  murdered  or  slaughtered 
Indians  disturb  my  repose  ;  and  the  reflection,  that  neither  myself  nor 
any  one  under  my  command  ever  did  or  suffered  violence  or  out- 
rage during  years  of  intercourse  with  those  reputed  the  most  savage 
tribes,  gives  me  a  satisfaction,  in  exchange  for  which  wealth  and 
honors  would  be  as  dust  in  the  balance." 

These  Lectures  were  received  with  great  favor  by  the 
audiences  before  which  they  were  delivered,  and  they  add- 
ed to  the  general  respect  previously  entertained  for  the 
elevated  character  of  the  author,  as  well  as  to  his  literary 
reputation. 

The  first  effort  of  Mr.  Sturgis  as  an  author,  in  print,  was  in 
the  pamphlet  upon  the  Oregon  Question,  before  alluded  to. 

In  the  year  1821-22,  the  people  of  the  United  States  were 
startled  by  claims  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  made  by  the 
Russian  Government  to  the  exclusive  possession  of  the  most 
valuable  portions  of  the  North-west  Coast,  amounting  virtu- 
ally to  the  right  of  exclusive  possession  of  the  whole  Ameri- 
can continent  north  of  the  51°  of  latitude,  and  of  holding  the 


32 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   8TUR0IS. 


Pacific  Ocean  as  a  close  sea  to  tliat  extent,  although  about 
four  thousand  miles  across. 

The  Emperor  had  issued  a  ukase  to  this  effect,  which  had 
been  communicated  by  the  Russian  minister,  the  Chevalier  de 
Poletica,  to  our  Government.  By  it,  all  foreign  vessels  coming 
within  one  hundred  miles  of  the  shores  of  the  territories  so 
claimed  were  declared  subject  to  confiscation  and  forfeiture, 
with  the  cargoes  on  board. 

To  Mr.  Adams's  inquiry  for  an  explanation  "  of  the  grounds 
of  right,  upon  principles  generally  recognized  by  the  laws 
and  usages  of  nations,  which  could  warrant  the  claims  and 
regulations  contained  in  the  edict,"  M.  de  Poletica  declared 
himself  happy  to  fulfil  the  task ;  and  he  undertook  in  an  official 
communication  to  maintain  them  upon  three  bases,  —  the  titles 
of  first  discovery,  of  first  occupation,  and  of  peaceable  and 
uncontested  possession  for  more  than  half  a  century.  These 
propositions  he  undertook  to  establish  by  a  variety  of  histori- 
cal references  and  statements,  which  certainly,  to  one  not 
otherwise  informed,  made  out  a  very  plausible,  if  not  a  very 
strong  case. 

Such  an  event  could  not  fail  to  excite  the  deepest  interest 
among  those  who  were  engaged  in  the  trade  on  the  Coast, 
then  at  its  height,  and  particularly  in  the  mind  of  Mr.  Sturgis, 
who  was  thoroughly  master  of  the  subject  by  means  of  his 
personal  exploration  of  the  most  important  portions  of  the  ter- 
ritory included  in  the  ukase,  and  of  the  study  he  had  made  of 
its  history,  both  by  inquiry  of  the  natives,  and  in  the  published 
Voyages  of  the  discoverers  and  adventurers  in  those  regions. 
The  importance  of  the  trade  at  that  time  was  so  great,  and 
the  indignity  to  the  United  States  which  would  be  involved  in 
a  summai'y  enforcement  of  the  threat  was  so  manifest,  that  war 
between  the  two  countries  seemed  inevitable,  unless  the  jus- 
tice of  these  claims  could  be  demonstrated,  or  the  assertion 
of  them  should  be  abandoned. 

Mr.  Stiirgis   immediately  prepared,  and   published  in  the 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


"  North-Amorican  Review,"  a  reply  to  them  and  to  the  seve- 
ral arguments  ^dduced  by  the  Russian  minister,  which,  it  is 
believed,  constitutes  a  refutation  as  annihilating  as  any  to  bo 
found  in  the  records  of  political  discussion.  His  familiarity 
with  all  the  essential  facts  a.id  elements  of  the  case  from  the 
earliest  known  period,  his  admirable  array  of  the  argument, 
and  the  clear  and  vigorous  style  in  which  it  was  presented, 
leave  nothing  to  be  desired.  It  gave  the  coup  de  grace  to 
the  most  material  portions  of  the  claim,  and  secured  for  the 
author  an  extensive  reputation  for  being  among  the  ablest 
public  writers,  as  he  had  long  been  among  the  first  of  the 
eminent  merchants,  of  his  country. 

In  the  subsequent  negotiation  with  Russia  upon  the  sub- 
ject, sho  abandoned  the  chief  of  these  vast  pretensions;  the 
United  States  conceding  to  her  the  exclusive  right  of  settle- 
ment within  ten  leagues  of  the  sea  north  of  latitude  54^  40', 
—  that  being  the  southern  limit  of  the  Russian  possessions  in 
America  thus  extended. 

The  estimation  in  which  this  contribution  to  the  "  Review  " 
was  held  may  be  seen  in  the  following  remark  concerning  it, 
in  a  note  from  the  Hon.  Edward  Everett,  dated  11th  Octo- 
ber, 1827:  "This  consideration  naturally  leads  me  to  turn 
my  thoughts  to  those  gentlemen  whose  assistance  I  formerly 
enjoyed ;  and,  after  the  tributes  which  have  been  publicly  paid 
to  your  article  on  the  North-west  Coast,  you  cannot  call  it  flat- 
tery, if  I  say,  that  to  no  one  piece  was  the  '  North-American 
Review '  (under  my  editorship)  so  much  indebted  as  to  that 
with  which  you  favored  me." 

The  next  subject  upon  which  Mr.  Sturgis  came  before 
the  public,  with  his  name,  was  the  sad  tragedy  on  board 
of  the  United-States  brig-of-war  "  Somers,"  under  Command- 
er Mackenzie,  in  the  sudden  execution  of  one  of  her  oflS- 
cers  and  two  seamen,  without  previous  trial,  on  the  charge 
of  an  attempt  to  excite  a  mutiny.  It  took  place  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1843;  and  no  event  short  of  the  immediate  danger  of 

5 


84 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   STUmnS. 


Ml 


llli. 


i  i 


a  foreign  war  probably  over  excited  the  people  of  the  United 
States  more  profoundly. 

It  became  the  subject  of  universal  animated  discussion  in 
conversation,  and  of  numerous  heated  articles  in  the  gazettes 
and  periodicals  of  the  day.  A  great  majority  of  them  were 
in  favor  of  Commander  Mackenzie  ;  not  only  fully  sustaining 
him,  but  attributing  to  him  extravagant  praise  for  heroic  con- 
duct in  the  execution  of  those  unhappy  men.  Among  such 
articles,  the  most  conspicuous  was  one  in  the  "  North- Ameri- 
can Review,"  which  was  written  by  a  gentleman  of  the  legal 
profession,  and  of  eminent  literary  reputation ;  and  which,  as 
was  remarked  in  the  leading  paper  of  the  day,  would  "  pass 
down  to  future  inquirers  as  the  contemporary  expression 
of  opinion  of  the  ablest  and  most  esteemed  of  the  critical 
journals  of  the  country." 

Indeed,  so  general  at  first  was  the  belief  of  the  justifiable 
nature  of  the  execution  as  a  matter  of  irresistible  necessity 
(from  the  impulsive  conviction  that  such  an  awful  transaction 
could  not  by  possibility  have  otherwise  taken  place),  that  com- 
paratively very  few  were  found  who  thought  otherwise,  or 
ventured  to  express  such  thoughts  if  they  entertained  them. 
Mr.  Sturgis,  however,  was  one  of  the  few  who  did  entertain 
them ;  and  it  is  needless  to  add,  that  he  therefore  fearlessly 
expressed  them. 

After  the  termination  of  the  trial  of  the  commander,  for 
the  alleged  murder  of  these  men,  by  a  naval  court-martial,  in 
which,  by  a  majority  of  three  fourths  of  the  members,  the 
charges  were  "  found  not  to  be  proven,"  and  after  the  publica- 
tion of  the  evidence  and  the  finding  of  the  Court,  and  of  the 
article  alluded  to  in  the  "  North -American  Review,"  Mr. 
Sturgis  published,  as  we  have  before  stated,  under  his 
signature,  two  articles,  headed  "The  Somers  Mutiny,"  and 
"  The  Somers  Mutiny,  No.  2  " ;  which  may  be  found  in  the 
"  Semi  weekly  Courier  "  of  August  7,  1843. 

Great  as  was  the  confidence  which  his  nautical  experience. 


MEMOIR  OF   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


86 


cool  judgment,  and  known  lionesty  and  independence  of 
thought,  could  not  but  extensively  inspire,  still  no  one  could 
have  been  prepared  for  the  critical  ability,  literary  skill,  legal 
acumen,  and  eloquence,  exhibited  in  these  papers. 

The  first  was  occupied,  in  part,  by  a  consideration  of  the 
existence  and  probable  causes  of  the  wide-spread  popular 
opinion  in  favor  of  Commander  Mackenzie,  but  was  mainly 
devoted  to  a  masterly,  vigorous,  and  comprehensive  reply  to 
the  article  in  the  "  North-American  Review."  The  second  con- 
tained a  careful  analysis  and  most  able  discussion  of  the  evi- 
dence, in  which  he  maintained,  "  that  the  occurrences  on 
board  the  '  Somers,'  after  the  arrest  of  Spencer,  ought  not  to 
have  induced  any  cool,  judicious  commander,  exercising  an  or- 
dinary degree  of  judgment  and  discretion,  to  have  thought  it 
necessary  to  put  Spencer,  Cromwell,  and  Small  to  death  for  the 
safety  of  the  '  Somers '  and  the  security  of  the  officers  and 
crew ; "  and  it  closed  in  terms  of  unequivocal  and  very  strong 
condemnation  of  Commander  Mackenzie,  "  not  only  for  what 
took  place  on  board  the  *  Somers,'  but  likewise  for  his  per- 
severing efforts,  in  his  official  narrative,  on  his  trial,  and  in  his 
published  defence,  to  blast  the  reputation  of  the  living,  and 
render  odious  the  memory  of  the  dead." 

The  following  pathetic  appeal  may  take  rank  with  the  best 
specimens  of  modern  eloquence :  — 

"  It  might  have  been  thought  necessary,  for  the  vindication  of 
Commander  Mackenzie  upon  his  trial,  that  all  the  offences  alleged  to 
have  been  committed  by  young  Spencer  on  board  the  '  Somers ' 
should  be  fully  set  forth.  But  what  possible  good  can  now  result  from 
gathering  and  recoiding  every  doubtful  anecdote  of  his  boyish  life  ? 
The  reviewer  does  not  give  his  authority  for  the  stories  he  relates. 
They  may  or  may  not  be  true.  But,  whether  true  or  false,  they  are, 
in  my  opinion,  out  of  place  upon  the  pages  of  the  '  North-American 
Review.'  Let  the  dead  rest.  No  deed  of  violence  had  been  done  by 
the  accused.  Tlie  only  charge  against  him  is  the  intention  to  commit 
a  crime.  And,  were  the  charge  tru-^.  surely  a  horrid  death,  under  the 
most   aggravating  circumstances,  suddenly  announced  to  him,  with 


II 


36 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   STURGI8. 


Ill 


i 


'n 


Sll'l!  i 


notice  that  ten  minutes  would  be  allowed  him  for  preparation,  —  ten 
minutes !  —  in  that  fearful  hour,  for  a  child  to  pour  forth  to  his 
parents  the  agony  of  his  soul ;  to  express  contrition ;  to  explain  all 
that  might  palliate  his  offences  ;  to  entreat  their  forgiveness,  and  to 
invoke,  as  he  did  invoke,  blessings  on  their  heads  !  —  ten  minutes  for 
life's  closing  scene,  —  to  make  his  peace  on  earth,  and  prepare  to  stand 
before  the  judgment-seat  of  God!  —  sarely,  surely,  such  a  death 
might  expiate  crime  actually  committed  :  let  it  atone  for  the  intention 
only  to  commit  one,  and  let  the  dead  rest.  Spare  the  living  too.  If 
the  political  eminence  of  the  father  must  place  him  beyond  the  pale  of 
humanity,  and  leave  him  exposed  to  these  attacks,  be  tender  with  the 
mother ;  respect  her  grief.  She  now  finds  consolation  for  her  ago- 
nized feelings  in  the  firm  belief  that  her  son  died  innocent.  Is  it 
generous,  is  it  just,  needlessly  to  shake  her  belief,  take  from  her  this 
consolation,  and  add  .^  keener  pang  to  the  anguish  of  a  mother's 
heart  ?  Sure  I  am,  that  only  the  want  of  due  consideration  could 
have  led  the  amiable  and  high-minded  writer  of  the  Review  to  follow 
in  the  track  of  thoughtless  newspaper-scribblers  or  venomous  party 
politicians,  and  by  giving  currency  to  idle  gossip,  or  something  worse, 
heap  obloquy  upon  the  memory  of  the  defenceless  dead,  and  wound 
afresh  the  lacerated  and  quivering  feelings  of  the  living." 

These  papers  produced  a  great  change  in  public  sentiment 
throughout  this  part  of  the  country,  the  minds  of  many  hav- 
ing been  previously  uninformed  of  the  precise  facts,  and  of 
the  course  of  reasoning  relied  upon  in  justification  of  Com- 
mander Mackenzie,  most  of  which,  indeed,  could  be  fully 
known  only  after  the  publication  of  the  trial. 

They  should  be  preserved  in  some  permanent  form,  not 
merely  as  specimens  of  the  masterly  ability  and  independence 
of  the  writer,  but  as  the  proper  counterpart  of  the  celebrated 
article  referred  to,  that  it  may  not  "  pass  down  to  future 
inquirers  as  the  [onlyl  contemporary  expression "  of  the 
public  opinion  of  the  day;  the  subject  b.  ing,  as  Mr.  Sturgis 
in  his  introduction  says,  one  which  "affects  in  no  slight 
degree  the  reputation  of  the  navy,  the  character  of  the 
country,  the  sacred  cause  of  justice,  and  the  holy  rights  of 
humanity." 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


37 


But  a  still  more  important  and  signal  service  was  rendered 
to  his  country  by  Mr.  Sturgis,  upon  the  breaking-out  of  the 
controversy  between  England  and  the  United  States,  in 
the  year  1844,  concerning  the  Oregon  Territory;  which  con- 
troversy the  political  partisans  on  both  sides  of  the  water, 
in  equal  utter  ignorance  of  the  position  and  extent  of  the 
country  and  of  its  history,  and  of  the  various  rights  of  other 
nations  upon  its  coasts,  were  ready  to  inflame  into  open 
war. 

Here,  again,  his  personal  familiarity  with  the  topography  of 
the  Coast,  with  the  course  of  trade  on  its  various  rivers,  and 
with  the  extent  to  which  it  had  been  resorted  to  and  occupied 
by  foreign  nations,  and  particularly  by  Spain,  England,  and  the 
United  States,  qualified  him  in  a  very  peculiar  degree,  if  not 
exclusively,  as  far  as  an  individual  could  be  qualified,  for  the 
formation  of  an  impartial  judgment,  and  for  enlightening 
others  upon  the  subject;  and  he  proved  himsf^lf  as  well 
adapted  to  the  task  intellectually  and  morally,  as  he  was  by 
this  peculiar  knowledge. 

He  prepared  an  elaborate  treatise  upon  the  subject,  which 
he  afterwards  delivered  as  a  Lecture  before  the  Association 
above  mentioned,  in  January,  1845,  the  substance  of  which 
was  soon  afterwards  printed  as  a  pamphlet. 

The  matter  was  one  of  great  perplexity  and  seeming  con- 
fusion, owing  to  the  miscellaneous  claims,  made  by  Russia, 
England,  Spain,  and  the  United  States,  of  prior  discoveries, 
and  of  the  use  and  occupation  of  various  portions  of  this  vast 
wilderness, — bounded  on  the  east  by  the  Rocky  Mountains,  on 
the  west  by  the  Pacific  Ocean,  with  its  numeious  indentations, 
bays,  sounds,  inlets,  capes,  and  islands,  and  extending  from  the 
forty-second  degree  of  north  latitude  to  that  of  54"  40';  —  and 
constituting  an  area  of  seven  hundred  and  sixty  miles  in  length 
from  north  to  south,  and  of  about  five  hundred  from  east  to 
west,  with  large  rivers  extending  far  into  and  draining  the 
interior. 


38 


MEMOIR  OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


\i-i 


No  one,  remembering  the  agitation  of  this  question  at  that 
time,  can  be  forgetful  of  tlio  insensate  cry  of  "  Fifty-four 
forty,  or  fight  1 "  which  was  so  flippantly  and  recklessly  ut- 
tered by  the  party  politicians  of  the  day,  in  equal  ignorance  and 
disregard  of  the  truth  and  the  right  of  the  case ;  or  can  for- 
get the  deep  apprehension  of  a  closely  impending  war,  felt 
by  the  friends  of  peace  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic. 

In  this  treatise,  Mr.  Sturgis,  after  an  exhausting  exhibition 
of  the  material  facts  of  the  case,  and  a  setting-forth  of  the  re- 
spective claims  and  pretensions  of  the  parties  interested  with 
great  clearness  and  judicial  impartiality,  arrived  at  the  follow- 
ing result :  — 

"■  Some  of  the  objections  made  by  the  British  commissioners  to  our 
claims  to  the  exclusive  possession  of  the  whole  territOi-y  cannot  be 
easily  and  satisfactorily  answered  ;  and  some  of  their  objections  are 
unfounded  or  frivolous,  —  the  mere  skirmishing  of  diplomacy,  and  un- 
worthy of  high-minded  diplomatists  :  but  it  must,  I  think,  be  evident, 
to  any  one  wlio  looks  carefully  into  the  whole  matter,  that  some  of  the 
pretensions  of  each  party  are,  to  say  the  least,  plausible  ;  and  that, 
according  to  the  rules  established  among  civilized  nations  in  similar 
cases,  each  has  some  rights,  which  should  be  adjusted  and  settled  by 
compromise  and  mutual  concession." 

He  then  entered  upon  a  discussion  of  the  various  interests 
which  each  party  might  be  supposed  to  have  in  the  possession 
of  these  territories,  and  concluded  by  recommending  the 
adoption  of  the  lino  substantially  established  by  the  subse- 
quent treaty,  but  defined  it  in  much  more  precise  and  clear 
terms,  which,  if  they  had  been  copied,  would  have  prevented 
the  possibility  cf  misapprehension,  and  have  saved  the  two 
countries  from  the  unhappy  San-Juan  controversy,  which 
still  rankles  as  a  thorn  to  disturb  their  friendly  relations. 

The  line,  as  described  in  the  treaty,  is  in  these  words :  "  From 
the  point  on  the  forty-ninth,  parallel  of  north  latitude,  where 
the  boundary  laid  down  in  existing  treaties  and  conventions 
between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  terminates,  the 


MEMOIR   OP  V  ILLIAM   STURGTS. 


39 


line  of  boundary  between  the  territory  of  the  United  States 
and  those  of  her  Britannic  Majesty  shall  be  continued  west- 
ward along  the  forty-ninth  parallel  of  north  latitude  to  the 
middle  of  the  channel  which  separates  the  continent  from 
Vancouver's  Island,  and  thence  southerly  through  the  middle 
of  said  channel  and  Fuca's  Straits  to  the  Pacific  Ocean."    * 

The  line  proposed  by  Mr.  Sturgis  was  as  follows :  "  A  con- 
tinuation of  the  parallel  of  forty-nine  degrees  across  the  Rocky 
Mountains  to  tide-water,  say  to  the  middle  of  the  Gulf  of 
Georgia;  thence  by  the  northernmost  navigable  passage  (not 
north  of  forty-nine  degrees)  to  the  Straits  of  Juan  de  Fuca, 
and  down  the  middle  of  these  straits  to  the  Pacific  Ocean ;  the 
navigation  of  the  Gulf  of  Georgia  and  the  Straits  of  Juan 
de  J^uca  to  be  for  ever  free  to  both  parties ;  all  the  islands  and 
other  territory  lying-  south  and  east  of  this  line  to  belong  to  the 
United  States,  and  all  north  and  west  to  Great  Britain." 

It  will  be  perceived  that  the  insertion  of  the  words  here 
Italicized  would  have  rendered  the  definition  of  the  navi- 
gable passage  intended,  and  of  the  territories  intended  to  be 
separated  by  it,  too  plain  to  admit  of  controversy. 

This  pamphlet  was  not  only  widely  circulated  among  the 
ministers  and  statesmen  at  Washington,  but  also  among  those 
in  England,  where  it  met  with  almost  universal  approbation 
for  its  intelligence  and  candor. 

The  writer  of  this  Memoir  feels  perfectly  justified,  by  the 
evidence  in  his  possession,  in  asserting  that  the  settlement  of 
this  dangerous  controversy,  by  the  line  adopted,  was  mainly, 
if  not  entirely,  owing  to  this  effort  of  Mr.  Sturgis,  and  the 
use  made  of  it  by  the  friends  of  peace  in  both  countries. 

It  must  be  a  rare  fortune  for  any  private  individual,  hold- 
ing no  official  station,  and  in  no  immediate  connection  with 
the  statesmen  conducting  the  foreign  relations  of  his  country, 
to  be  thus  instrumental  in  the  final  solution  of  two  great 
national  controversies,  which,  but  for  his  efforts,  might  have 
terminated  in  disastrous  wars. 


I 


40 


MEMOIR   OP  WILLIAM  STUR0I8. 


t'lili 


'''ll 


Both  of  these  adjustments  are  monuments  of  his  intellec- 
tual ability  and  literary  accomplishments,  and  call  for  a  grate- 
ful national  remembrance ;  but  that  of  the  Oregon  Question 
evinces  the  breadth  of  view  also,  and  the  rare  magnanimity, 
which  enabled  him  justly  to  appreciate  and  honestly  to  vindi- 
cate the  claims  of  the  adversary  of  his  country,  while  firmly 
maintaining  hers. 

To  these  qualities,  signally  manifested  in  this  pamphlet, 
may  probably  be  attributed,  in  a  great  measure,  its  success  in 
moderating  the  views  of  his  own  countrymen,  and  winning  the 
confidence  of  the  English  rulers  and  people. 

The  three  "  Lectures  "  upon  the  trade  of  the  North-west 
Coast  and  the  characters  and  manners  of  the  Indian  tribes,  tKe 
article  in  the  " North- American  Review"  upon  the  claims  of 
the  Russian  Government  to  that  region  of  the  American  con- 
tinent, aT  d  this  discussion  of  the  question  in  controversy  be- 
tween Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  concerning  the  Ore- 
gon Territory,  are  the  most  extensive,  authentic,  and  valuable 
contributions  to  the  earlier  history  of  that  part  of  the  world 
which  have  hitherto  been  made,  and  probably  leave  very  little 
for  future  gleaners.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  they  will  be  em- 
bodied in  a  volume  for  permanent  preservation,  as  they  would 
constitute  one  without  which  no  collection  of  books  upon  the 
subject  of  America,  and  no  historical  library,  could  be  account- 
ed complete ;  and  to  them,  for  the  reasons  above  suggested, 
should  be  added  the  papers  on  the  "  Somers  Mutiny." 

Such  is  the  brief,  simple  narrative  of  the  principal  events 
in  the  life  of  this  extraordinary  man.  They  sufficiently,  per- 
haps, proclaim  the  intellectual  strength  and  moral  elevation 
which  were  the  most  conspicuous  features  of  his  char- 
acter. His  whole  nurture,  indeed,  seemed  fitted  for  the 
cultivation  of  the  sterner  virtues  almost  exclusively.  His 
childhood  and  early  boyhood  passed  upon  a  little  sterile  farm, 
the  labors  of  which  devolved  principally  upon  him,  with  no 
room  for  mental  expansion  beyond  the  occasional  privileges 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


41 


of  a  village  school ;  his  youth  and  early  manhood  spent  on 
shipboard,  in  the  rough  companionship  of  the  forecastle  and 
the  steerage,  or  in  the  lonely  watches  of  despotic  authority 
upon  the  quarter-deck,  —  breasting  the  tempests  of  the  open 
sea,  or  the  more  harassing  perils  of  coastwise  navigation  upon 
wild  and  inhospitable  shores;  his  introduction  to  business 
life  in  traffic  with  the  savage  inhabitants  of  the  Coast ; 
and  his  almost  total  seclusion,  in  most  of  the  forming  period 
of  life,  from  the  opportunities  of  mental  and  spiritual  culture, 
and  the  influences  of  a  refined  civilization,  —  might  well  have 
seemed  calculated  for  the  growth  only  of  the  heroic  courage, 
indomitable  energy,  self-reliance,  and  ability  to"  command,  by 
which  he  was  among  all  men  pre-eminently  distinguished. 
To  the  general  observer,  his  quickness  of  perception,  clear- 
ness of  judgment,  stern  love  of  justice,  fearless  independence, 
promptitude  of  decision,  and  dauntless  resolution,  —  constitut- 
ing a  character  of  rare  strength, —  might  often  overshadow 
its  gentler  traits,  and  sometimes  might  obscure  these  even 
from  his  own  consciousness.  But  there  was  a  native  urbani- 
ty, a  depth  of  aflfection,  a  readiness  of  sympathy,  a  generosity, 
a  refined  nobleness  of  nature,  manifest  to  those  whom  he 
loved,  or  to  whom  friendship  or  any  just  claim  gave  op- 
portunity for  the  exercise  of  them ;  and  these  were  exhi- 
bited no  less  in  his  intercourse  with  the  wild  Indians  upon 
the  far-off  savage  coast,  than  at  the  domestic  hearth  or  in  the 
social  circles  of  civilized  life.  And  to  these  were  added  a  love 
of  letters,  a  ready  wit,  a  sense  of  honor,  and  an  appreciation 
of  the  courtesies  and  amenities  of  cultivated  life,  which  might 
seem  hard  to  be  accounted  for  under  such  rough  training, 
except  in  the  natural  structure  of  his  mind  and  heart,  —  as 
steel  of  the  hardest  temi)er  takes  the  finest  polish.  No  one, 
who  knew  him,  ever  doubted,  that  at  all  times  and  under  any 
circumstances,  he  would  "  dare  do  all  that  may  become  a 
man  " ;  and  no  one  probably  ever  lived  more  uniformly  faithful 
than  ho  to  the  conviction,  that  "  who  dares  do  more  is  none." 

6 


42 


MEMOIR  OP  WILLIAM  STURGI9. 


,  III; 


m: 


In  turning  to  contemplate  the  character  of  Mr.  Sturgia  in 
private  life,  we  might  naturally  anticipate  some  diversity  of 
opinion ;  as  it  is  not  possible  for  a  man  of  faculties  so  various 
and  acute,  and  of  such  abounding  energy,  to  produce  on  all 
minds  similar  and  harmonious  impressions.  His  rapidity  of 
decision,  strength  of  will,  and  entire  independence  in  the 
expression  of  his  convictions,  would,  of  necessity,  at  times 
awaken  a  spirit  of  opposition,  and  sometimes,  perhaps,  excite 
irritation ;  although  in  his  later  days  certainly,  and  throughout 
his  life  so  far  as  opportunity  for  observation  on  the  part  of 
the  writer  of  this  Memoir  extended,  his  convictions  were  al- 
ways uttered  With  an  urbanity,  and  a  graceful  disclaimer  of  any 
want  of  deference  to  those  of  others  who  might  difler  from  him, 
that  entirely  disarmed  the  hearers  of  any  suspicion  of  arro- 
gance or  overweening  confidence  on  his  part.  His  early  life 
passed  in  necessarily  entire  reliance  upon  his  own  resources 
and  judgment  in  the  most  exciting,  perilous,  and  responsible 
duties,  could  not  but  have  imbued  him  with  some  corre- 
sponding degree  of  self-confidence,  and  may  occasionally  ha  7e 
rendered  him  less  accessible  to  conviction  in  matters  of  pre- 
conceived opinion,  than  persons  of  inferior  force  of  character. 
But  it  would  be  a  great  injustice  to  his  memory,  for  one  fami- 
liarly versed  in  his  habits  of  conversation  and  discussion, 
whether  upon  matters  of  business,  or  of  speculation  only, 
not  to  bear  witness  to  the  courtesy  and  candor  with  which 
his  side  of  the  question  was  uniformly  maintained,  and  to 
his  readiness  to  yield  to  the  stronger  reason ;  while  instanced 
will  recur  to  the  minds  of  his  friends,  in  which,  although 
not  at  first  convinced,  he  would  afterwards  seek  to  make 
known  a  change  of  opinion  consequent  upon  further  reflec- 
tion. 

It  may  be,  that  many  accounted  him  stern,  who  saw  him  only 
occasionally,  or  when  he  was  called  upon  to  express  opinions 
concerning  the  management  of  public  or  private  affairs,  or  the 
policy  that  had  been  or  should  be  pursued  concerning  them. 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


43 


to 


He  certainly  was  stern  in  his  hatred  and  denunciation  of  all 
falsehood,  equivocation,  and  pretence,  under  any  and  all  cir- 
cumstances ;  and  he  had,  perhaps,  less  indulgence  or  con- 
sideration than  most  men  for  the  weakness  by  which  so  many 
are  led  into  conduct  and  situations  wanting  in  nothing  of  fraud 
and  criminality  but  the  originating  will.  Perhaps,  too,  he 
had  less  consideration  for  the  imbecility  of  purpose,  by  rea- 
son of  which  multitudes  so  often,  more  or  less  voluntarily, 
become  dependent  upon  charity  or  pecuniary  aid.  These, 
were  natural  consequences  of  his  own  peculiar  habit  of  self- 
reliance,  and  the  hard  discipline  of  self-denying  econojtiy, 
severe  labor,  and  unremitting  effort,  by  which  he  had  sur- 
mounted the  difficulties  of  early  life  while  dependent  solely 
upon  his  own  exertions,  and  had  without  help  attained  to  the 
highest  objects  of  his  aspiration.  Further :  his  own  reflection 
and  observation  had  satisfied  him,  that  the  promiscuous  giving 
of  alms  was  productive  of  far  more  evil  than  good ;  and  to 
yield  to  importunity  in  begging  would  have  been  in  him  a 
weakness  instead  of  a  virtue. 

He  rarely,  therefore,  gave  to  street  mendicants,  or  in  re- 
sponse to  the  numerous  calls  made  by  individuals  for  pecu- 
niary aid.  And  this  has  led  to  the  belief,  more  or  less 
extensive,  that  he  was  wanting  in  liberality.  But,  without 
claiming  for  him  a  pre-eminent  spirit  of  philanthropy,  or  any 
unusual  degree  of  impulsive  generosity,  justice  now  demands 
a  reference  to  munificent  gifts  made  by  him,  which,  in  his 
lifetime,  he  took  studious  pains  to  conceal. 

A  short  time  before  his  death,  he  gave  to  the  Observatory 
in  Cambridge  the  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars,  having  before 
made  to  it  several  valuable  donations.  Upon  application  to 
become  one  of  several  to  contribute  for  the  payment  of  the 
balance  of  the  debt  of  this  Society,  incurred  in  the  purchase 
of  its  Hall,  he  promptly  gave  the  whole  sum  required.  Many 
instances  might  be  adduced  in  which  he  gave  large  amounts 
for   public   charities   and   for  private   relief;    usually,   how- 


44 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM  STURGIS. 


ever,  accompanied  with  ttrict  injunctions  of  secrecy.  A 
singular  illustration  of  the  misconception  that  may  prevail 
upon  such  a  subject  occurred  soon  after  his  decease.  A  gen- 
tleman, who  supposed  himself  well  acquainted  with  Mr. 
Sturgis,  in  speaking  of  him  to  another  friend,  remarked,  that 
it  was  to  be  regretted  that  "  he  was  so  close,  and  always 
so  unwilling  to  give."  To  which  the  person  addressed  replied : 
"  I  do  not  know  how  that  may  be  in  comparing  him  with 
•  others :  but  I  do  know,  that,  within  a  short  space  of  time,  he 
has  given  ten  thousand  dollars  to  one  institution  and  two  sums 
of  one  thousand  dollars  each  to  two  other  charitable  purposes ; 
and  that  he  recently  contributed  five  hundred  dollars  for 
raising  one  of  our  regiments."  The  gentleman  felt  reproved, 
but  made  no  reply.  He  soon  afterwards  returned  to  apologize 
to  the  living  and  the  dead  for  his  remark;  saying,  "  Since  I  left 
you,  I  have  heard  of  two  other  recent  instances  of  like  liberal, 
but  secret,  donations."  It  is  known  to  a  few  only,  that  he 
appropriated  an  ample  fund  of  twenty  thousand  dollars  for  a 
public  benefaction,  to  which  an  allusion  only  can  now  be  made. 
This  is  held  by  trustees  selected  by  himself  to  eifect  his 
object;  which  will  be  an  enduring  monument  not  only  of 
generosity,  but  of  the  most  considerate  wisdom  and  -human- 
ity. Few  men  probably,  of  equally  extensive  munificence, 
take  equal  pains  that  the  left  hand  shall  not  know  what  the 
right  hand  is  doing. 

Nor  was  this  liberality  confined  to  the  relief  of  suffering, 
and  the  promotion  of  science  and  art.  Mr.  Sturgis  was  equally 
ready  to  lay  portions  of  his  wealth  upon  the  altar  of  sentiment, 
and  of  reverence  for  the  honored  dead. 

When,  in  the  year  1834,  the  philosopher  and  philanthro- 
pist, Spurzheim,  died  in  this  city,  wdiere  his  lectures  ex- 
cited a  deep  and  extensive  interest,  and  gave  an  impulse  to 
thought  upon  mental,  moral,  and  physical  development, — 
the  fruits  of  which  have  been  ever  since  abundantly  apparent 
in  our  pulpits,  lecture-rooms,  and  schools,  —  his  remains  were 


MEMOIR  OF   WILLIAM   STUROIS. 


45 


deposited  with  public  honors  at  Mount  Auburn ;  and  Mr. 
Sturgis,  who  had  listened  to  hia  teachings,  soon  afterwards 
erected,  at  the  cost  of  a  thousand  dollars  from  his  own  purse, 
the  beautiful  monument  which  marks  the  place  where  rest 
the  remains  of  the  beloved  and  honored  stranger ;  in  testi- 
mony, to  use  his  own  words,  of  "  respect  for  the  memory  of 
one,  whose  clear,  comprehensive,  and  elevated  view  of  the 
nature  of  man  marked  him  as  the  sound  philosopher;  and 
whose  unwearied  efforts  to  promote  human  happiness,  by 
physical,  intellectual,  and  moral  culture,  placed  him  in  the 
foremost  rank  of  the  philanthropists  of  the  age." 

Instances  might  be  adduced  of  his  peculiar  promptitude  of 
decision  and  action  in  emergencies  of  peril;  but  the  enumer- 
ation would  be  superfluous,  as  his  character  has  been  already 
sufficiently  shown  to  leave  no  question  of  it  under  any  cir- 
cumstances. 

With  his  abounding  energy  was  mingled  a  magnanimity 
and  kindliness  of  feeling,  which  made  him  ever  ready  to 
strengthen  or  aid  others  to  whom  his  interposition  might  be 
useful.  The  following  note  from  Theodore  Parker  will  show 
to  what  extent  an  impromptu  act  of  kindness  may  be  service- 
able, and  in  what  manner  it  must  have  been  rendered,  to  be 
so  long  and  so  gratefully  remembered :  — 

"  Boston,  Nov.  30, 1855. 
"William  Sturgis,  Esq. 

"  Dear  Sir,  —  Fourteen  years  ago  this  month,  I  delivered  a  course 

of  lectures  on  matters  pertaining  to  religion  in  Boston.    A  few  minutes 

before  I  began  to  speak,  while  I  felt  such  agonies  of  embarrassment 

and  fear  as  I  hope  never  to  know  again,  you  came  and  sat  down 

beside  me,  and  strengthened  me.     I  have  been  thankful  ever  since ; 

and  now  beg  you  to  accept  the  volume  which  accompanies  this  note, 

with  the  grateful  regards  of 

"  Yours  truly, 

"  Theodore  Parker." 

The  act  and  the  acknowledgment  are  equally  honorable 
to  both  particp.     "Wlion  will  the  world  learn  that  kindness  and 


46 


MEMOIR  OP   WILLIAM   STUR0I8. 


sympathy  are,  beyond  all  others,  the  most  powerful  levers 
with  which  to  move  the  human  heart? 

On  another  occasion,  at  an  assemblage  to  listen  to  an  ad- 
dress from  Mr.  Wendell  Phillips,  some  disturbance  arose  from 
efforts  made  to  prevent  his  being  permitted  to  speak.  Mr. 
Sturgis,  who  was  present,  although  ho  was  probably  as  deci- 
dedly opposed  to  the  orator's  peculiar  sentiments  as  any 
person  in  the  room,  immediately  stepped  forward  upon  the 
platform,  and,  appealing  to  the  sense  of  propriety  and  the 
self-respect  of  the  audience,  and  at  the  same  time  vindicating 
the  right  of  free  speech,  secured  the  meeting  from  further 
interruption. 

As  an  instance  of  the  firmness  of  resolution  which  was  so 
marked  a  feature  of  his  character,  it  is  worth  relating,  that, 
during  his  voyages  at  sea,  he  became  greatly  addicted  to 
smoking,  insomuch  that  he  was  scarcely  ever  without  a  cigar 
in  his  mouth  in  his  waking  hours.  One  evening,  wliile  pacing 
the  quarter-deck  with  this  solace  of  his  lonely  watches  in 
his  lips,  the  strength  which  this  habit  had  acquired,  as  mani- 
fested in  the  extent  to  which  it  had  reached,  suddenly 
occurred  to  him;  and,  after  pausing  a  few  moments,  he  de- 
posited the  cigar  upon  the  taffrail,  saying  to  himself,  "  I  will 
not  take  another  until  I  change  my  mind  " :  and  he  never 
smoked  another  in  his  life,  except  during  the  battle  with 
the  Chinese  pirates  above  described ;.  at  the  commencement 
of  which  he  called  for  his  cigars,  to  the  enjoyment  of  which 
the  circumstances  doubtless  gave  a  peculiar  zest. 

A  similar  instance  is  found  in  his  total  abstinence  from  wine ; 
in  the  moderate  use  of  which,  in  company  with  his  friends,  he 
took  great  pleasure ;  but,  being  satisfied  that  it  had  a  ten- 
dency to  cause  or  aggravate  a  disease  to  which  he  was  liable, 
he  abstained  entirely  from  it.  Of  spirituous  liquors  he  never 
drank  a  glass  in  his  life,  being,  as  he  said,  so  deeply  im- 
pressed with  the  evils  of  intoxication,  that  he  early  resolved 
never  to  drink  one ;  and  he  never  did. 


MEMOIR  OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


47 


No  man  was  more  faitliful  to  the  dictates  of  disinterested 
friendship.  Nor  did  his  affectionate  service  terminate  with 
the  lives  of  his  friends;  but  it  became  the  inheritance  of 
their  families,  in  deeds  of  kind  attention  and  assistance  ren- 
dered wherever  acceptable.  Nor  did  it  cease  even  with  his 
own  life,  but  was  renewed  and  prolonged  in  testamentary  be- 
quests. Allusions  to  particular  instances  would  be  an  offence 
to  him,  whose  affectionate  consideration  of  others  was  ex- 
celled only  by  his  sensitive  and  scrupr.'ous  delicacy.  One 
instance,  however,  may  not  inappropriately  be  alluded  to,  as 
illustrating  this  fidelity  in  the  rendering  oi"  service,  and  test- 
ing its  genuineness  far  more  than  the  bestowment  of  money 
could  have  done.  It  is  this,  that,  for  a  period  of  about  thirty 
years,  he  took  entire  charge  of  the  very  large  estate  of  a 
personal  friend,  absorbing  equal  time  and  labor  with  the  care 
of  his  own,  upon  the  condition  of  never  being  asked  to 
receive  compensation. 

As  to  his  personal  habits,  Mr.  Sturgis  lived  in  almost  Spar- 
tan simplicity,  although  liberal  to  his  family  in  bestowments 
upon  his  ci.ildren,  and  in  supplying  generously  all  that  con- 
stitutes the  comfort  and  substantial  luxury  of  a  well-ordered 
household.  His  dress  was  always  simple  and  unpretending ; 
his  furniture  and  equipage  entirely  without  ostentation  or 
superfluity ;  nothing  being  expencled  upon  works  of  art  and 
the  elaborate  adornments  in  which  so  many  find  great  and 
reasonable  pleasure.  These  he  held  in  very  "light  esteem. 
Although  endowed  with  a  keen  sensibility  to  the  beauiies  of 
nature,  as  his  writings  abundantly  testify,  he  appeared  to  be 
singularly  deficient  in  taste  for  art,  always  disclaiming  the 
capacity  to  derive  pleasure  from  it. 

No  pictures  adorned  his  walls,  and  no  sculpture  found 
niches  in  his  house.  It  seems  difficult  to  account  for  this 
inaptitude  to  enjoy  that  which  by  many  is  justly  accounted 
one  of  the  choicest  privileges  of  cultivated  life.  The  only 
solution  which  suggests  itself  is  to  be  found  in  the  habits  ac- 


48 


MEMOIR  OF  WILLIAM  STURGI8. 


quired  in  the  severe  simplicity  of  his  early  days^  and  in  the 
self-denying  economy  which  he  was  compelled  to  practise ; 
limiting  his  expenditures  to  the  absolute  necessaries  of  life, 
and  discarding  every  indulgence  in  what  seemed  a  super- 
fluity, or  might  interrupt  his  progress  to  the  statiors  to 
which  he  aspired.  Perhaps  this  misfortune,  as  many  may 
deem  it,  was  in  part  owing  to  the  entire  want  of  any  oppoi*- 
tunity  for  acquiring  the  rudiments  of  taste  in  art  at  the 
period  of  life  when  the  faculties  and  feelings  are  most  sus- 
ceptible to  its  influence. 

One  of  the  peculiar  traits  of  his  social  character  was  a 
ready  wit,  a  faculty  of  repartee  and  badinrigo  very  rarely 
excelled,  and  indeed  not  often  equalled.  But  it  was  always 
entirely  under  his  control,  and  was  never  suffered  to  transcend 
the  bounds  of  a  courteous  urlianity,  or  of  innocent  amusement. 
Indeed,  it  was  not  unfrequently  the  happiest  means  of  con- 
veying an  expression  of  his  affection  and  regard  for  his 
friends;  and  occasionally  it  found  vent  in  versification,  indi- 
cating great  readiness  and  felicity  in  such  use  of  his  pen. 
Nor  did  he  shrink  from  the  practical  consequences  of  his 
merriment,  if  turned  to  account  against  him. 

An  amusing  instance  of  his  humor  and  readiness  occurred 
while  he  was  in  the  legislature.  In  an  animated  debate,  a 
friend,  whom  he  highly  esteemed,  ornamented  an  able  argu- 
ment, on  the  side  to  which  Mr.  Sturgis  was  opposed,  with 
somewhat  numerous  quotations  in  Latin  and  Greek.  As  soon 
as  he  sat  down,  Mr.  Sturgis  arose,  and  remarked, "  that  he  had 
been  much  impressed  with  the  very  able  argument  to  which 
he  had  listened,  and  especially  with  the  learned  citations  with 
which  it  had  been  adorned,  and  which,  he  did  not  doubt,  were 
most  apposite  and  illustrative,  but  which  he,  and,  as  he  be- 
lieved, a  large  majority  of  those  to  whom  they  were  addressed, 
did  not  comprehend,  not  having  been  taught  the  languages  in 
which  they  were  uttered ;  that  he  was  not  willing,  however, 
that  his  friend  should  carry  off"  all  the  literary  honors  of  the 


MEMOIR   OP  WILLIAM  STURGIS. 


49 


occasion,  nor  ulono  liavc  the  boncfit  of  producing  conviction 
by  spoaking  in  an  unknown  tongue  ;  "  and,  in  conclusion,  ho 
repeated  several  sentences  in  the  Indian  language  of  tho 
North-west  Coast,  affirming  "  that  they  were  as  much  to  the 
point,  and  doubtless  as  intelligible  and  convincing  to  most  of 
those  present,  as  had  been  tho  quotations  in  Latin  and  Greek 
with  which  the  gentleman  had  favored  them." 

In  commercial  transactions  and  all  matters  of  contract, 
Mr.  Sturgis  ever  acted  upon  tho  highest  principles  of  mercan- 
tile integrity.  ITis  extensive  knowledge,  quick  perception, 
and  understanding  of  human  nature,  gave  him  decided  advan- 
tages over  most  men ;  but  such  was  the  legitimate  and  honor- 
able use  ho  made  of  them  in  negotiation,  that  no  suspicion  of 
his  want  of  entire  good  faith  was  ever  excited.  Probably  no 
man  ever  lived  in  our  community  in  whose  integrity,  or  in 
whose  bare  word,  more  implicit  faith  was  reposed. 

He  had  very  largo  sums  always  invested  in  loans  and 
personal  securities ;  but  he  never  took  more  than  the  legal 
rate  of  interest.  In  conversation,  not  long  before  his  decease, 
he  said  to  a  friend :  "  I  have  never  taken  more  than  six  per 
cent,  for  the  money  I  have  lent ;  and  you  may  think  this  a 
little  inconsistent,  when  I  tell  you,  that,  if  it  were  a  question 
of  merchandise  or  stocks,  I  might  make  the  very  best  bargain 
I  could,  and  use  in  a  proper  way  any  knowledge  I  might 
have,  which  I  had  a  right  to,  to  give  me  the  advantage. 
It  is  not  my  habit,  my  taste,  if  you  please ;  and,"  he  added, 
"  I  always  remember  a  remark  which  old  Mr.  Astor  once  made 
to  me,  that  the  practice  of  taking  usurious  interest  '  narrered 
the  mind  and  'ardened  the  'art.'  " 

His  judgment  upon  all  matters  of  investment  was  greatly 
prized  and  sought  for,  and  always  freely  and  cheerfully  given, 
whatever  might  be  his  personal  interests,  —  with  the  frank  dis- 
closure, however,  of  any  that  might  be  supposed  to  influence 
his  opinion. 

His  extensive  and  familiar  knowledge  of  all  branches  of 


50 


MEMOIR   OP   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


S    ' 


trade  and  manufactures,  and  of  the  intrinsic  values  of  estates 
real  and  personal,  caused  him  to  be  much  sought  for  as  pre- 
sident or  director  in  many  of  the  larger  and  more  important 
incorporated  institutions ;  the  duties  of  which  offices  he 
performed  with  exemplary  disinterestedness,  punctuality,  and 
fidelity. 

The  strength  of  the  domestic  affections  in  Mr.  Sturgis  was 
in  correspondence  with  the  other  elements  of  his  character. 
His  love  for  his  children  and  grandchildren  was  tender  and 
intense,  and  was  his  chief  source  of  daily  interest  and 
happiness,  particularly  in  the  later  period  of  his  life.  He 
imparted  to  them  liberally  of  his  large  fortune,  and  culti- 
vated with  them  the  habit  of  constant  and  cheerful  inter- 
course ;  making  his  departure  to  be  feit  by  them  as  the  loss 
not  only  of  a  natural  protector,  but  also  of  a  familiar  compan- 
ion and  confiding  friend. 

The  depth  of  his  parental  attachment  was  manifested  on 
the  death  of  his  son,  —  a  youth  of  remarkable  promise,  both 
intellectual  and  moral,  standing  at  the  head  of  his  class  in 
the  University,  and  equally  conspicuous  for  every  manly 
grace  and  virtue.  He  was  suddenly  killed,  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  years,  by  a  blow  from  the  boom  of  a  vessel,  while 
he  was  on  a  sailing  excursion.  His  father  never  recovered 
from  this  grief.  He  had  naturally  placed  the  fondest  hopes 
in  this  only  son,  who  had  already  become  a  proud  ornament 
of  his  advancing  age  ;  who  seemed  possessed  of  every  faculty 
and  virtue  which  the  fondest  and  most  judicious  parent  could 
desire ;  and  to  whom  Le  looked  for  the  transmission  of  his 
name  and  reputation  with  increasing  honor. 

It  was  his  first  great  grief;  and  its  shadow  darkened  the 
whole  remainder  of  his  life.  At  first,  the  intensity  of  his 
agony  was  such,  that  no  mention  of  the  young  man's  name,  or 
allusion  to  the  event,  wa^  ever  made ;  every  one  feeling, 
that,  though  not  prohibited,  the  allusion  would  be  but  a  fresh 
excitement  of  an  uncontrollable  sorrow  with  which  the  father 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


51 


was  struggling.  In  his  strong  nature,  he  sought  no  sympa- 
thy, preferring  to  suiFer  in  the  solitude  of  his  own  soul ;  or 
he  dared  not  trust  himself  to  converse  on  the  subject,  lest  it 
might  betray  him  into  a  weakness  to  which  he  would  not 
yield ;  or  he  felt,  perhaps,  that  his  loss  was  so  profound  and 
unutterable  as  to  be  beyond  relief  This  was  indeed  a  sad 
mistake,  in  which,  however,  he  continued  for  many  years ;  and 
it  was  not  until  he  was  far  advanced  in  life,  that  he  could  bear 
any  allusion  to  this  sorrow.  But  the  "  sable  cloud  "  gradually 
"turned  forth  her  silver  lining  on  the  night," — in  the  sub- 
dued intensity  of  his  character ;  the  increasing  tenderness  of 
his  affections;  the  touching  sensibility  which  he  manifested 
when  a  parental  grief  befell  any  one,  however  unknown,  or 
otherwise  a  stranger  to  his  heart;  and  in  his  manifestations 
of  interest  in  the  friends  of  his  beloved  boy.  He  became 
conscious  of  his  error;  and,  in  a  letter  of  condolence  to  a 
friend  in  affliction,  long  after  his  son's  death,  he  expressed  his 
regret  that  he  had  thus  yielded  to  his  first  impulses;  and  coun- 
selled free  interchange  of  thought  and  feeling,  as  the  natural, 
and  among  the  most  effectual,  means  of  relief. 

About  twenty  years  before  his  death,  his  love  of  his  family 
and  his  taste  for  the  simplicity  and  surroundings  of  rural  life, 
led  him  to  establish  a  home  in  the  country  during  the  summer 
and  autumn,  where  he  could  gather  around  him  all  his  chil- 
dren and  their  families.  For  this  purpose,  he  selected  a 
spacious  and  commodious  house,  originally  constructed  for  a 
summer  hotel,  on  the  border  of  Horn  Pond, — one  of  the  most 
beautiful  and  romantic  of  the  many  beautiful  lakes  with  which 
New  England  abounds ;  and  here  they  passed  together  many 
delightful  seasons  in  tiie  most  unrestrained  enjoyment  of 
affectionate  and  confiding  family  intercourse,  of  a  generous 
hospitality,  and  of  all  the  simple  luxuries  which  country  life 
aftbrds  and  country  life  alone  can  supply. 

One  side  of  the  lake  was  bordered  by  very  steep  hills, 
rising   abruptly,  and    covered  with   deep  woods.     He    was 


52 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


liM! 


^!|:    111 


;ii  f'i 


wont  in  the  evening  to  take  his  boat  alone  under  the  deep 
shadows  of  this  shore,  and  remain  there  until  quite  late ; 
where  the  solitude,  evening  grandeur,  and  utter  stillness  of 
the  scene,  brought  back  to  him,  as  he  said,  his  early  years 
on  the  North-west  Coast. 

He  indulged  his  grandchildren  in  the  most  unrestrained 
liberty  of  familiar  affection ;  and  many  hours,  of  the  deepest 
interest  to  their  parents  and  any  visitors  in  the  circle,  as  well 
as  to  the  little  ones,  they  passed  in  his  company;  when, 
after  frolicking  with  them  in  their  childish  games,  he  would 
yield  to  their  solicitations  for  some  stories  abo^t  the  Indians 
and  the  North-west  Coast.  Such  narratives,  beginning  in  the 
twilight  on  the  piazza,  were  sometimes  protracted  into  late 
evening,  being  enlivened  witii  illustrations  of  the  opinions  or 
religious  character  of  some  Indian  like  Kilchart,  until  the 
listeners  came  to  feel  towards  him  as  warm  a  personal  friend- 
ship as  did  the  narrator.  To  use  the  words  of  one  who  Avas 
familiar  with  his  daily  life  there,  "  Those  who  then  visited 
Horn  Pond  will  not  easily  forget,  either  the  natural  beauty  of 
the  lake,  with  the  densely  wooded  mountain  rising  beyond  it, 
or  the  images  of  those  who  dwelt  there,  and  who  have  since 
passed  from  this  earth ;  who  were  so  full  of  life  and  joy  and 
radiance,  and  who  entered  so  largely  into  the  daily  happiness 
of  him  who  has  just  gone  to  meet  them,  lliere  was  in  their 
character  a  loyalty,  a  straightforward  truthfulness,  a  depth  of 
affection,  and  a  nobleness  of  nature,  that  were  evidently  he- 
reditary." 

The  death,  thus  alluded  to,  of  two  of  his  beloved  daughters, 
so  changed  the  scene  of  such  hitherto  undisturbed  and  iinal- 
loyed  happiness,  and  the  effects  of  it  were  so  great  upon  his 
heart,  that  the  associations  and  the  contrast  became  too  pain- 
ful ;  and  this  patriarchal  summer  home  was,  not  long  after- 
wards, relinquished. 

Mr.  Sturgis  would  probably  not  be  accounted  a  religious 
man  by  tliose  whose  faith  demands  the  nurture  of  a  prescribed 


MEMOIR   OP  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


53 


ritual  or  of  stated  observances ;  or  by  those  whose  piety 
leads  to  a  self-denying  asceticism,  as  a  means  of  propitiating 
an  offended  God ;  or  by  those  who  base  their  trust  upon  the 
intellectual  belief  of  a  particular  scheme  of  salvation ;  or  by 
those  whose  idea  of  the  whole  duty  and  destination  of  man 
is  his  exclusive  culture  and  exercise  of  the  devotional  senti- 
ments, regardless  of  the  development  of  the  other  elements 
of  his  nature.  But,  if  an  entire  conviction  of  the  existence 
and  attributes  of  God  —  as  the  Author  and  Supreme  Gover- 
nor of  the  universe ;  as  a  Ruler  of  infinite  power,  justice, 
and  love ;  and  as  having  designed  his  children  for  ultimate 
happiness  hereafter,  to  be  attained  by  means  of  the  discipline 
of  life,  and  by  conscientious  obedience  to  his  will  as  revealed 
in  his  works,  in  the  nature  of  the  human  soul,  and  in  the  inspi- 
rations of  the  teachers  whom  he  has  sent  in  all  ages  to  en- 
lighten them  —  if  this  entitle  any  man  to  the  appellation  of 
reljfe"  MS,  it  may  be  justly  claimed  for  him.  It  is  certain,  how- 
ever. ;  I  he  made  no  especial  pretensions  to  that  character ; 
and  ^  -  aid  have  infinitely  preferred  to  be  classed  among  the 
unbelieving,  rather  than  to  be  guilty  of  the  hypocrisy,  or  the 
blasphemy,  of  professing  a  faith  that  he  did  not  sincerely  en- 
tertain. His  views  of  God  were,  that  he  is  a  beneficent  Parent, 
who  makes  all  things  work  together  for  good ;  and  of  death, 
that  it  is  but  an  exchange  of  worlds,  alike  lor  the  departing  and 
for  those  soon  to  follow ;  and  these  views  were  beautifully 
illustrated  in  the  following  bequest  in  his  will  to  one  who  was, 
otherwise  than  by  the  incident  referred  to,  almost  unknown  to 
him :  "  I  give  and  bequeath  to  the  Rev.  John  H.  Morison,  of 
Milton,  the  sum  of  five  hundred  dollars,  as  a  mark  of  my  esteem 
and  respect,  and  approval  of  the  manner  in  wliich  he  led  the 
services  at  the  funeral  of  my  late  friend,  W.  W.  Swain,  at 
New  Bedford.  The  cheerful  and  bright  views  of  the  change 
which  we  call  death,  that  he  expressed  on  that  occasion, 
are  altogether  in  accordance  with  my  own  long-cherished 
sentiments." 


54 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   8TURGI8. 


The  personal  appearance  of  Mr.  Sturgis  was  very  im- 
pressive. Although  of  rather  low  stature,  his  square  frame, 
upright  posture,  and  whole  movement,  indicated  great 
muscular  strength  and  energy.  His  head,  rather  closely  set 
upon  the  shoulders,  was  large ;  his  forehead,  broad  and 
high;  his  eyes  were  of  dark  blue,  overhung  by  peculiarly 
heavy  brows ;  his  nose  was  aquiline ;  and  his  mouth,  when 
closed,  strongly  indicative  of  firmness  and  resolution.  His 
conntenance,  when  composed,  was  grave  and  full  of  expres- 
sion,—  a  clear  index  of  the  dignity  and  energy  by  which 
he  was  ever  distinguished ;  but,  when  lighted  up  by  the 
tenderness  of  affection  or  the  joyousness  of  spirit  in  which 
he  abounded,  or  by  the  animation  of  conversation,  it  became 
singularly  beaming  with  his  emotions ;  giving  to  their  utter- 
ance a  gentleness,  strength,  or  vivacity,  never  to  be  forgotten 
by  those  who  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  fiimiliar  converse  with 
him.  It  is  greatly  to  be  lamented  by  his  friends  and  descend- 
ants, that  an  extreme  aversion  to  having  his  portrait  taken,  or 
any  representation  made  of  him  by  which  his  personal  ap- 
pearance could  be  perpetuated,  has  deprived  them  of  the 
treasure  which  a  suitable  likeness  would  have  been. 

The  writer  of  this  Memoir  lays  down  his  pen  with  regret. 
It  has  been  to  him  a  grateful  occupation  to  dwell  upon  the 
character  and  remembered  traits  of  one  whose  friendship, 
although  acquired  in  the  "sear  and  yellow  leaf"  of  old  age, 
had  shed  many  refreshing  influences,  which  he  had  hoped 
still  longer  to  enjoy.  No  one  can  be  so  sensible  as  himself 
of  the  imperfect  manner  in  which  his  pleasing  duty  has  been 
performed ;  nor  could  any  one  have  been  more  gratified,  had 
he  been  enabled  to  lay  a  more  fitting  tribute  upon  the  grave 
of  one  so  mucu  respected  and  beloved. 


APPENDIX. 


APPENDIX. 


I. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  President  and  Directors  of  the 
Massachusetts  Hospital  Life  Insurance  Company,  consist- 
ing of  the  following  members,  George  W.  Lyman,  President, 
and  WiHiam  Amory,  Edward  Austin,  Francis  Bacon,  J.  Inger- 
soU  Bowditch,  James  M.  Beebe,  J.  Wiley  Edmands,  George 
H.  Kuhn,  Amos  A.  Lawrence,  Charles  G.  Loring,  Francis  C. 
Lowell,  John  A.  Lowell,  George  R.  Minot,  and  Ignatius  Sar- 
gent, on  the  twenty-third  day  of  October,  1863,  the  following 
resolutions  were  unanimously  adopted :  — 

Besolved,  That,  in  the  death  of  the  Hon.  William  Stukgis,  we 
mourn  the  departure  of  one  of  the  honored  founders  of  this  Institu- 
tion ;  of  an  officer,  who,  in  continuous  service  from  its  original 
establishment,  has  been  devotedly  faithful  and  zealous  in  the  man- 
agement of  its  affairs ;  and  to  whose  sagacity,  knowledge,  elevated 
principles,  and  financial  skill,  it  is  in  a  great  measure  indebteJ^for  its 
extensive  usefulness,  and  the  wide-spread  confidence  which  it  enjoys. 

Besolved,  That  we  shall  ever  hold  in  precious  remembrance  the 
inspiring  vivacity  and  urbanity,  the  acute  sense  of  justice,  the  lofty 
honor,  and  emineat  ability,  by  which  he  was  ever  characterized  in  the 
discussions  and  social  intercourse  of  the  Board,  —  causing  his  depart- 
ure to  be  profoundly  lamented,  as  that  alike  of  the  honored  officer 
and  adviser,  and  of  the  respected  and  beloved  associate  and  friend. 

Besolved,  That,  in  the  death  of  this  honored  and  eminent  man,  we 
are  mindful  of  his  claims  upon  the  respect  and  gratitude  of  his  fellow- 

8 


58 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


citizens  for  the  great  share  which  he  has  contributed  to  the  mercantile 
prosperity  and  glory  of  the  Commonwealth,  by  a  long  life  of  faithful 
and  successful  service  in  the  promotion  of  her  mercantile  and  maiui- 
facturiug  interests,  ])re-eminently  characterized  by  vigorous  enter- 
prise at  sea  and  on-  shore ;  by  far-reaching  sagacity  and  extensive 
knowledge ;  and  by  a  high  sense  of  honor  and  unswerving  fidelity, 
united  with  untiring  energy  and  perseverance,  —  entitling  him  to  stand 
in  the  foremost  rank  of  those  who  have  established  and  nuiintained 
her  commercial  reputation  at  home  ^and  abroad. 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  Proceedings  be  transmitted  to  the 
family  of  the  deceased,  with  an  assurance  of  the  sympathy  of  this 
Board  in  their  bereavement. 


m 


.    II. 

The  Standing  Committee  of  the  Cape-Cod  Association  held 
a  special  meeting  on  Saturday,  the  twenty- fourth  day  of 
October,  1863,  at  eleven  o'clock,  a.m.  The  President  of  the 
Association,  on  taking  the  chair,  said, — 

This  special  meeting  is  called  for  the  melancholy  purpose  of 
announcing  to  you  the  death  of  our  venerable  and  highly  esteemed 
Vice-President,  the  Hon.  ^VILLIAM  Sturgis. 

In  my  official  duty,  gentlemen,  I  can  hardly  do  more  than  commu- 
nicate to  you  this  sad  event,  and  leave  it  to  your  sympathy  and  judg- 
ment to  propose  the  form  of  tribute  most  suitable  to  the  occasion. 

A  record  of  Mr.  Sturgis  is,  I  am  sure,  broadly  Avritten  in  the  heart 
of  each  member  of  this  meeting,  and  each  page  is  eulogy.  Known 
to  many  of  us  for  nearly  half  a  century,  his  high  qualities  are  deeply 
engraved  on  our  minds,  and  cannot  be  easily  erased.  His  honorable 
bearing,  his  cool  judgment,  and  his  considerate  action  under  difficul- 
ties, stamped  him  as  an  uncommon  man ;  and  his  extensive  knowledge, 
and  his  judicious  inferences  from  it,  made  him  a  useful  one.  He  was  ^ 
consulted  and  prized  by  his  associates,  respected  by  the  comumnity, 
and  honored  by  all. 

Mr.  Sturgis,  as  you  well  know,  was  a  native  of  the  Pilgrim  Gape  ; 
and  the  right  arm  of  the  Commonwealth,  our  good  old  Cape  Cod, 
must  ever  venerate  and  lament  him.     He  was  true  to  tl         in  all 


'^1 


APPENDIX. 


59 


tilings.     He  mnde  their  interests  his  own,  and  his  head  and  his  purse 
■were  responsive  to  tJieir  wisiies. 

To  this  Association  his  loss  is  great.  Mr.  Sturgis  was  one  of  its 
founders,  and  its  largest  pecuniary  benefactor.  The  doings  of  the 
Society  had  his  sanction  and  support ;  and  under  his  encouragement 
it  has  prospered.  He  has  now  gone  to  add  to  the  galaxy  of  our 
departed  and  distinguished  officers  and  friends,  —  himself  a  bright 
star  among  them,  —  and  leaves  a  void  in  our  organization  not  easy  to 
be  filled. 


The  Rev.  Dr.  Lothrop,  Francis  Bacon,  and  Isaac  Thacher 
were  appointed  a  Committee  to  draft  a  series  of  resolutions, 
expressive  of  the  feelings  of  the  Association  on  the  death 
of  Mr.  Sturgis,  and  reported  the  following,  which  were 
unanimously  adopted:  — 

It  having  pleased  Almighty  God,  our  heavenly  Father,  to  remove 
by  death  the  Hon.  William  Stuuuis,  one  of  the  Vice-Presidents 
of  this  Association,  we  desire  to  put  upon  our  Records  an  expres- 
sion of  our  feelings  and  of  our  judgment  of  his  character,  by  the  adop- 
tion of  the  following  resolutions  :  — 

Resolved,  That,  as  members  of  the  Cape-Cod  Association,  we  receive  witli  deep 
regret  the  intelligence  of  the  death  of  our  distinguished  associate,  the  Hon. 
William  Sturgis ;  and,  while  we  bow  in  devout  submission  to  the  divine  will,  — 
grateful  that  a  lite  so  useful  and  honorable  was  so  prolonged,  —  wc  lament  that 
another  endeared  name  has  been  stricken  from  the  roll  of  our  officers  and  mem- 
bers ;  and  that  we  are  deprived  of  the  sympathy  and  fellowship  of  one,  who, 
from  the  organization  of  our  Society,  —  his  signature  being  the  jirst  attached  to 
its  Constitution,  —  cherished  a  hearty  interest  in  its  objects,  and  exhibited  a 
ready  zeal  to  promote  its  prosperity,  extend  its  influence,  and  uphold  its  honor. 

liesolred,  That  we  sympathize  with  this  community  in  the  emotions  awakened 
by  the  death  of  another  of  its  "  merchant  princes,"  whose  name  has  been  so  long 
associated  with  all  that  is  manly  and  sagacious  in  commercial  enterprise,  lofty  and 
venerable  in  unspotted  integrity,  large  and  generous  in  Christian  charity. 

His  warm  heart  made  him  a  tender  and  steadfast  friend.  His  strong  intellect 
and  clear  judgment  made  him  a  wise  and  safe  counsellor.  Singularly  independ- 
ent and  honest  in  the  formation  of  his  opinions ;  unswerving  in  fidelity  to  his 
cojivictions  ;  of  an  impulsive  temperament,  guided  by  principle,  and  made  amen- 
able to  conscience,  —  his  character  and  career,  honorable  to  himself  and  beneficial 
to  others,  leave  his  name  to  be  held  hi  remembrance  as  that  of  a  wise,  just, 
faithful,  and  benevolent  man. 

lif'solnd.  That  a  copy  of  the  foregoing  resolutions,  with  the  expression  of  our 
sincere  sympathy,  be  sent  by  the  Secretary  to  the  family  of  the  deceased. 


60 


MEMOIR   OF  WILLIAM   STURGIS. 


III. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Boston  Marine  Society,  held 
on  the  third  day  of  November,  1863,  the  following  Preamble 
and  Resolution  were  offered  by  Captain  John  S.  Sleeper  :  — 

Whereas  Captain  William  Sturgis,  who  has  been  an  active  and 
honored  member  of  the  Boston  Marine  Society  for  more  than  sixty 
years,  has  been  called  away  by  the  Almighty  Power  at  a  ripe  old  age, 
to  rest  from  his  earthly  labors. 

Therefore  Resolved,  That  the  members  of  this  Society  avIU  long 
treasure  the  memory,  and  endeavor  to  emulate  the  example,  of  one 
who  justly  deserved  the  character  of  a  skilful  sailor,  an  enterprising 
merchant,  a  iiseful  citizen,  and  an  honest  man. 

The  above  was  unanimously  adopted,  and  ordered  to  be 
placed  on  the  records  of  the  Society ;  and  a  copy  of  the  same 
to  be  presented  to  the  family  of  the  deqeased. 


k 


\ 


ly. 

At  the  stated  monthly  meeting,  held  Thursday,  Nov.  12, 
1864,  the  President  announced  the  death  of  Lord  Lyndhurst,  an 
Honorary  Member  of  this  Society,  and  the  death  of  the  Hon. 
William  Sturgis,  a  Resident  Member,  in  the  following 
terms :  — 

We  may  not  forget,  gentlemen,  that,  since  our  last  monthly  meet- 
ing, two  names  of  more  than  common  significance  have  been  stricken 
from  our  rolls,  —  one  of  them  the  name  of  an  Honorary,  and  the 
other  of  a  Resident  Member.  .  You  would  hardly  pai'don  me  for 
omitting  some  brief  notice  of  them  before  passing  to  the  regular 
business  of  the  day. 

The  Presidopt  then  proceeded  as  follows  :  — 

The  Hon.  William  Stuugis  died  in  this  city  on  the  evening  of  the 
21st  of  October,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one  years.     Born  on  Cape  Cod, 


'; 


-!  1 1 


I 


APPENDIX. 


ei 


e 


and  taking  naturally  to  the  sea  as  the  field  of  liis  early  enterprise,  he 
soon  rose  to  the  highest  rank  as  a  navigator.  His  voyages  to  the 
North-west  Coast,  and  to  China  and  the  East  Indies,  at  a  time  when 
our  commerce  with  those  regions  was  in  its  infancy,  were  frequently 
attended  with  adventures  and  perils  of  an  almost  romantic  character. 
They  served  at  once  to  display  and  to  develop  the  extraordinary 
energy  and  bravery  of  his  nature.  Quitting  the  sea  with  a  largo 
fund  of  comniercial  experience,  and  establishing  himself  in  a  mercan- 
tile house  in  Boston,  he  became  one  of  our  most  sucoessful,  enterpris- 
ing, and  eminent  merchants,  as  well  as  one  of  our  most  esteemed  and 
valuable  citizens.  Wherever  ho  was,  on  sea  or  on  shore,  he  exhibited 
a  sagacity  and  an  intellectual  vigor  of  the  highest  order.  Few  men 
of  any  profession  have  surpassed  him  in  clearness  of  comprehension, 
in  quickness  of  perception,  or  in  practical  common  sense.  And  no 
man  surpassed  him  in  the  cotirage  to  declare  and  defend  his  own 
opinions,  whatever  tiiey  were.  Frequently  a  member  of  boih 
branches  of  our  State  Legislature,  he  was  distinguished  for  his  readi- 
ness and  ability  as  a  debater.  It  was  a  rare  thing  for  any  one  to  get 
the  advantage  of  him  in  offhand,  or  even  in  more  deliberate,  dis- 
cussion. Nor  was  his  pen  less  ready  than  his  tongue.  His  frequent 
contributions  to  the  public  journals  in  former  years,  and  his  written 
reports  in  the  Legislature  and  elsewhere,  would  compare  well  with 
those  of  most  of  our  trained  scholars. 

During  the  controversy  between  Great  Britain  and  the  United 
States  on  the  subject  of  the  Oregon  boundary,  his  personal  acquaint- 
ance with  that  territory,  and  his  familiarity  with  the  whole  history  of 
its  discovery,  were  of  the  highest  importance  to  our  Government. 
The  lecture  which  he  delivered  on  this  subject  before  the  Mercantile- 
Library  Association  of  our  city,  and  which  was  printed  at  the  time, 
was  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  valuable  public  discussions  of  the 
question  ;  while  his  private  correspondence  with  distinguished  states- 
men, both  at  honie  and  abroad,  was  well  understood  to  have  had  no 
small  influence  in  bringing  the  controversy  to  an  amicable  and  satis- 
factory issue. 

It  was  only  a  few  months  since  that  our  departed  associate  and 
friend  promised  me  that  he  would  put  this  correspondence  into  a  shape 
to  be  preserved  in  the  archives  of  our  Society ;  and  I  trust  that  it 
may  still  find  its  appropriate  place  iiere.  I  need  not  say  that  he  had 
given  other  evidences  of  his  interest  in  our  Avelfare.  You  have  not 
forgotten  the  announcement  at  our  last  annual  meeting,  that  he  had 


62 


MEMOIR   OF   WILLIAM   8TURGIS. 


made  a  donation  to  our  treasury  of  the  whole  amount  needed  to 
complete  tlic  disdiargc  of  the  mortgage  on  this  building.  Finding,  as 
one  of  the  Committee  to  examine  our  accounts,  that  about  twelve 
hundred  dollars  would  acconjplish  that  result,  he  volunte^ed  to  send 
me  his  check  for  the  sum,  on  the  simple  condition  that  his  name 
should  not  be  published  in  the  newspapers.  INIr.  Sturgis  has  thus 
entitled  himself  to  be  gratefully  remembered  among  our  benefactors, 
as  well  as  among  our  most  respected  and  distinguished  associates ; 
and  I  am  sure  you  will  all  concur  in  the  adoption  of  the  customary 
resolution,  which  I  am  instructed  bv  the  Standing  Committee  to 
report  as  follows  :  — 

Rexnlrrfl,  That  tlii."  Society  lins  lienrd  with  deep  regret  of  the  death  of  their 
valued  associiUc,  tlic  Hon.  Wiiliain  Sturgis  ;  and  tiiat  the  President  lie  directed  to 
name  one  of  our  nunihcr  to  prepare  a  Memoir  of  him  for  our  Transactions. 

This  resolution  was  seconded  by  the  Hon.  Charles  G. 
LoRiNG,  who  spoke  as  follows :  — 

Mr.  PrrsiDENT,  —  I  a.sk  indulgence  for  a  few  minutes  to  express 
my  concurrence  in  the  proposed  resolution. 

My  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Sturgis,  although  of  long-distant  date 
as  a  general  one,  had  ripened  in  the  course  of  the  past  six  or  seven 
years  into  a  very  cordial,  and,  I  think  I  may  say,  somewhat  intimate 
friend.'ship.  Our  intercourse,  though  at  the  first  chietly  official,  soon 
became  frequent,  and  far  exceeding  the  necessities  or  ordinary  routine 
of  business.  I  can  therefore,  I  think,  speak  with  somewhat  of 
authority  concerning  hi«  claims  upon  our  remembrance,  and  bear 
testimony  to  the  fitness  of  the  record  of  it  which  it  is  now  proposed  to 
make. 

In  the  course  of  a  long  and  bu.sy  life,  presenting  many  opportuni- 
ties for  observation  and  study  of  the  characters  of  prominent  men  in 
our  community,  I  remember  no  one  of  more  striking  peculiarities  and 
harmonized  strength  tluiu  that  of  our  deceased  friend  in  his  later, 
and,  as  I  am  disposed  to  believe,  his  best  days.  For  surely  we  may 
reasonably  account  those  the  best,  when  effort  and  aspiration  have 
terminated  in  possession  of  the  prizes  of  life,  and  opportunity  and 
disposition  are  given  for  the  right  enjoyment  and  use  of  them;  — 
when  the  vigorous  faculties  exerted  in  their  attainment  still  find 
"  ample  room  and  verge  enough "  for  gently  exciting  play  in  the 
duties  and  incidents  of  family  relationship  and  social  life,  in  the 
guardianship  of  the  interests  of  others,  and  in  the  needed  authority  of 


- 


APPENDIX. 


63 


' 


ripeued  jiidj^meiit  in  the  j^cneral  affairs  of  inon  ;  —  when  the  nn'llowing 
iuHuence  of  ii  long  experience  in  self-examination,  and  in  varied  t)b- 
servation  of  the  mingled  and  often  nndistingni.siiable  strength  and 
weakness,  virtue  and  frailty,  truth  and  error,  which  compose  so  much 
of  the  motley  web  of  human  life,  has  begotten  that  8i)irit  of  liberal 
interpretation  of  motive  and  conduct  which  such  experience  alone 
seems  able  to  beget ;  —  when  the  standard  of  truthfulness,  honor,  and 
fidelity  to  duty,  has  become  the  ever-ready  and  controlling  test  of 
Avorth,  and  of  claims  for  consideration  and  respect;  —  and  wiien  a 
subdued  consciousness  of  the  affection  and  respect  of  descendants, 
relatives,  associates,  and  friends,  throws  its  mellow  sunshine  upon  the 
descending  path  of  earthly  life.  And  such  were  the  peculiar  blessings 
of  old  age,  in  the  midst  of  which  our  friend  has  left  us. 

The  prominent  elements  of  the  character  of  Mr.  Sturgis  are  too 
generally  and  too  well  known  to  recpiire  minute  description  and 
analysis  on  this  occasion;  and  the  history  of  its  formati^a  wci'id 
demand  more  time  and  space  than  the  occasion  permit- .  The}  -nay 
well  become  the  subject  of  a  Memoir  for  the  archives  of  this  Society, 
of  which  he  was  a  liberal  benefactor  and  an  honored  member ;  one 
who  has  made  material  contributions  to  the  history  of  a  por^'on  of 
the  country.  It  is  enough  for  the  present  purpose,  and  in  vie  s  -A  a 
more  enlarged  memorial,  that  we  now  recognize  the  marvellous 
strength  of  that  character,  in  the  vigor  of  his  intellect,  his  almost 
unequalled  quickness  and  accuracy  of  perception,  his  far-reaching 
sagacity,  his  profound  and  comprehensive  judgment,  his  keen  insight 
into  human  nature,  his  untiring  energy,  indomitable  resolution,  and 
unflinching  courage  ;  —  that  we  recall  to  mind  his  varied  and  accurate 
knowledge,  extending  far  beyond  the  confines  of  his  especial  pursuits 
and  occupation ;  his  cultivated  literary  taste,  his  brilliant  conversa- 
tional powci-s,  his  genial  disposition  and  inspiring  vivacity,  his 
aptness  in  lively  repartee,  and  happy  social  influences  upon  all  around 
him; — and  that  to  these  we  can  add  the  reme:.  ')''nnce  of  his  high 
sense  of  honor,  his  unswerving  loyalty  to  truth,  ;'■: '  iidelity  to  every 
trust. 

These  were  traits  of  character  obvious  to  all  who  came  within  the 
circle  of  his  acquaintance.  But  to  these  eieiaents  of  strength  and 
power  were  united  others,  which,  thou{;h  iess  conspicuous,  are  yet  not 
less  worthy  of  recorded  reniembrarice.  To  them  he  added  a  tender 
love  and  genirous  devotion  t^  his  children  and  relatives ;  the  most 
considerate  und  enduring   affection  for   his  friends,  extending   after 


64 


MEMOIB   OF   WILLIAM  STURGIS. 


their  death  to  those  dear  to  them,  in  continued  deeds  of  substantial 
kindness ;  and  an  enlightened  and  extensive  liberality,  founded  on  a 
mingled  sense  of  duty  and  generous  feeling,  of  which  liberality  many 
institutions  and  individuals  have  been  the  recipients,  but  which, 
during  his  life,  remained  mostly  unknown,  because  of  the  uniform 
injunction  of  secrecy,  upon  the  pledge  of  which  the  gifts  were  made  ; 
it  being  his  constant  effort  in  these  ministrations,  that  his  left  hand 
should  not  know  what  his  right  hand  was  doing. 

With  this  hasty  and  very  imperfect  tribute  to  the'  memory  of  our 
friend,  I  beg  leave  to  second  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 

The  resolution,  after  a  few  remarks  by  Mr.  Quingy,  was 
unanimously  adopted. 

The  President  nominated  Mr.  Loring  to  prepare  the 
customary   Memoir  of  Mr.  Sturgis. 


if 


